Ethics and Codes of Conduct in Australian Business Society

Ethics and code of conduct1
Ethics and codes of conduct
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Ethics and code of conduct 2
Executive summary
This paper is about ethics and codes of conduct in the society that we are living. It is about
business ethics that influence the way we carry out our day to day operations. The paper
analyses the scope of business ethics and the different concepts that are applied to it. It
narrows down to explain what is stated in the Australian code of conduct. It goes ahead to
explain the ethics in Australian business society that affects different individuals in Australia.
The paper also gives two case study examples where companies were involved in different
corruption and bribery scandals. These acts were against the Australian code of conduct. After
citing the examples it concludes by analyzing and comparing the bribery acts in which the
companies were involved.

Ethics and code of conduct 3
Table of contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................................4
1.0 Ethics and codes of conduct................................................................................................4
1.1 Scope of business ethics.....................................................................................................5
1.2 Concepts of business ethics................................................................................................6
1.3 Ethical principles in business ethics.....................................................................................6
2.0 The Australian Code of Conduct.............................................................................................7
2.1 Business ethics in Australia...............................................................................................10
2.3 Case example 1 of unethical business practice.................................................................10
2.4 Case example 2 of unethical business practice.................................................................11
3.0 Case analysis, judgments and recommendations.................................................................13
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................14
References..................................................................................................................................15

Ethics and code of conduct 4
Introduction
1.0 Ethics and codes of conduct.
Ethical code of conduct is a set of rules that contain different principles and standards to be
followed by individuals and organizations when carrying out their operations. These codes are
different depending on the stated discipline and licensing bodies. Every organization should
have a code of conduct that it uses in its operations (Rothaermel 2015). It should clearly clarify
the organization’s mission, vision and objectives and link them to ethical standards of carrying
them out. It can also be a valuable source of reference on matters of decision making and
solving conflicts in the organization. A code has quite a number of purposes in the external
environment to which it is serving (Chan Fung & Yau 2010). This includes: compliance with the
legislation, marketing of a company’s products and services and risk mitigation by reducing risks
associated with various misconducts. A company’s code of ethics and professional conduct
should include the following items: the work environment, conflicts of interest, should protect the
assets of the company, discuss on anti-bribery and corruption issues, discuss on attendance
and punctuality, it should talk about the causes of action on employees who go absent without
notice, should address on how to handle general harassment and sexuality at the work place,
talk about the dress code and use of phones at work (Brooks & Dunn 2011). Substance use and
the use of tobacco products should also not be left behind. When writing a code of ethics and
conduct, the company should review its mission statement and core values, talk to all the
stakeholders, review past ethical issues, and take note on where the company has failed and
then create a draft copy for input and discussion (Stanwick & Stanwick 2013). This will act as a
guide in the day to day operations at the organization with members abiding by what the code of
conduct is recommending as a right to be done while avoiding the wrongs.
1.1 Scope of business ethics.
Business ethics is the code of conduct that is used in a given business environment. It entails
the policies and practices applied on different issues that arise on issues such as governance,
bribery, corporate social responsibilities and case of discrimination amongst other issues. These
ethics are formulated by discussions from different individuals, rules from different organization
and the legal system (Griseri & Seppala 2010). Ethics generally touches corners that the