Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethical Issues in Nike Company

Corporate Social Responsibility 1
Corporate Social Responsibility
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Corporate Social Responsibility 2
Abstract
The objective of this essay is to respond to specific ethical questions by examining recently
published ethical issues of Nike Company in the news media. This paper provides an
introductory outline of the areas addressed in the entire essay. A summary outline of the
media article is presented concerning the arguments made in it. Then corporate social
responsibility is discussed in detail as the primary ethical issue highlighted in the article. The
essay then provides the student's opinion whether the moral decision by Nike was the most
appropriate one or not. Additionally, examples of other ethical cases namely Coca-Cola and
Walmart Company are provided to support the opinion. The essay offers an ethical decision-
making process according to the student in line with the opinion given. Lastly, a conclusion is
made about the achievements of the initial objectives of the essay

Corporate Social Responsibility 3
Introduction
Various individuals or groups have always resisted violation of the code of ethics at the
workplace, but ethical misconduct at the workplace is still evident in most organizations. This
essay considers the latest published ethical issues of Nike Company in the Raked media
article. The piece begins by providing an outline and summary of the ethical issues in the
article; then a discussion is made on the key ethical concerns namely corporate social
responsibility. The writer’s opinion on whether the company has taken the most appropriate
decisions or not is provided alongside examples of moral cases in other companies. Lastly,
the student submits his ethical decision-making process in line with his opinions.
Article Summary
Ethics can be defined as the right principles by which individuals behave themselves
personally informally and professionally. “The perceived conflict between the traditional
corporate objective of profit maximization and the overall desire for increased social welfare”
(Schwartz, 2017). The article “did Nike’s Frat Boy Culture” lead to the departures of two
executives”? by Lieber (2018) published in Racked examines the recent resignation of Nike
executives on accusations of engaging in actions that were demeaning to female employees.
The article names the Brand president of Nike Trevor Edwards and Nike vice president
Jayme Martin as the individuals who were fired for protecting male staffs who harassed and
bullied women and people from foreign nations.
The article points out that the announcement was made through a memo of the company CEO
Mark Parker. The CEO consents that the organization's internal HR system was under review.
However, the article points out that cases of workplace misconduct are not new in Nike
Company, and several cases of former employee complaints are taken from Glassdoor in
which most employees refer Nike to “frat boy culture.” A former employee also refers Nike

Corporate Social Responsibility 4
to an insolent, ageist, chauvinist, entitled, spoilt and selfish executive management”. The
article also notes that Nike has all-time low employee satisfaction because of its bureaucratic
overwork of 80 hours per week and inadequate compensation. The company is also accused
of favouritism in promotions and workplace operations. Such workplace misconduct is a
direct violation of labor laws on gender equality, employee right to safe working conditions
and reasonable pay.
Corporate Social Responsibility
The article points out several areas of key ethical issues about Nike Company. The article
points out that Nike has poor working conditions that are not up to the standard of WHO. For
instance, employees are forced to work for 70-80 hours per week. This shows that Nike has
no responsibility for the well-being of its employees. Nike has historically been accused of
taking advantage of underdeveloped countries to establish subsidiaries and take advantage of
the cheap labor force (Boje and Khan, 2009). The organization is also accused of segregation
by color (Lund-Thomsen and Coe, 2013). One of the former employees is quoted in the
article blaming Nike Company for favoring the white or British employees more than others.
The company is accused of making it difficult or impossible for employees to advance career-
wise if not included in their social circle. This state of things is fostered and encouraged by
the executive, and as a result, it is reflected amongst the employees.
The article primarily reports of demeaning actions of the Nike management on women and
individuals from foreign countries. Two senior executives resigned from the company on
allegations of sexual harassment and protecting junior staff who were involved in behavior
that was belittling to female employees and even bullied them alongside team from foreign
countries. The management behavior suctioned the misconduct of the employees against their