Ethics in decision making 159

You have just been appointed to the board of directors of XYZ.com. Unfortunately, the dot-com company has been experiencing some difficult financial times, resulting in revenue losses in three of the last four quarters. As you assume your new position, you discover that two proposals are on the table. Each proposal has been put forth as a means for dealing with XYZ’s immediate financial problems. Proposal #1 recommends that all employees be retained, but that an immediate freeze on salary increases (raises) for all employees be imposed for the next six months. (Employees may even be asked to take a 5% cut in pay if things do not improve by the end of that period.) Proposal #2 recommends that wages not be frozen, but that 5% of the XYZ’s work force by laid off. (One piece of reasoning behind this proposal is that taking more drastic measures will “protect” 95% of XYZ’s workers and will send a message to Wall Street and local investors that XYZ is serious about improving its financial position and that it will soon be a stable company once again.) The board is evenly split, seven members favoring proposal #1 and seven favoring proposal #2. Yours will be the tie-breaking vote.

Write a 4 page paper exploring this issue. Take a position and defend it making use of the ethical process described in the first four chapters of Brown and Chapter 3 in Tavani. In addition use the philosophical theories utilitarianism, deontology and character-based as discussed in Tavani (chapter 2) and Brown (chapter 4) to support your arguments. You must demonstrate that you have read these materials by making at least 5 citations using both sources.

Use 1” borders, double spacing, and 12 point Times New Roman type. Check for all spelling errors, as papers with even one such error will not be graded. Be sure to have an appropriate introduction, logically reasoned arguments and a good conclusion. You may wish to consult the Academic Resource Center in Wahlstrom Library for assistance with writing mechanics.