CSR & Ethical Responsibilities: A Report on 'Blood, Sweat & T-shirts'

This report evaluates the ethical challenges presented in the documentary 'Blood, Sweat & T-shirts,' focusing on the ethical responsibilities of retailers sourcing goods from Indian factories. It discusses the narrow and broad views of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), arguing that the broad view is more ethical based on deontological ethics. The report analyzes the retailers' actions, highlighting the exploitation of workers and the prioritization of profit over ethical considerations. It applies Kant's deontology theory to support the argument that businesses should treat people as ends, not means, and emphasizes the ethical obligations of retailers to ensure fair labor practices and worker welfare. The report concludes that the current practices of UK retailers are ethically questionable and proposes recommendations for more responsible sourcing and supply chain management.

Running Head: BUSINESS ETHICS
Business Ethics
Name of the Student:
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Author Note

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Executive summary
The paper discusses views in relation to both narrow and broad view of CSR. It provides
arguments for and against both the views of CSR. The paper conducts a discussion of ethical
theory of deontology comes to a conclusion that broad view of CSR is more ethical then the
narrow view of CSR. Corporate social responsibility is a common word associated with
contemporary business organizations. The primary purpose for which an organization is created
is that of making profit. However as a citizen of the society it is also the duty of the organization
to take care of the needs of the society. It has been observed in the documentary Blood, Sweat
and T-shirt episode 4 that the fashion organizations in UK are outsourcing their work to India.
The paper emphasizes that the broad view of CSR is much more ethical as compared to the
narrow view in the light of ethical theories. The paper also emphasizes that what the UK
organizations are doing is not ethically correct.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Narrow view of CSR.......................................................................................................................3
Broad view of CSR..........................................................................................................................4
Deontology ethics............................................................................................................................5
How is the Broad view of CSR more ethical?.................................................................................6
Ethical obligations of the UK retailers............................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................7
Recommendations............................................................................................................................7
References........................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
Corporate social responsibility is a common word associated with contemporary business
organizations. The primary purpose for which an organization is created is that of making profit.
However as a citizen of the society it is also the duty of the organization to take care of the needs
of the society (Tai & Chuang, 2014). It has been observed in the documentary Blood, Sweat and
T-shirt episode 4 that the fashion organizations in UK are outsourcing their work to India. The
workers in the Indian factories are provided with a very derogative working environment and
treatment which is not only against human rights but also legal provision. The workers in such
factories are not provided any health and safety tools and also not paid adequately so that they
can support themselves.
The purpose of the report is to analyze the circumstances in the light of various ethical
theories. The paper provides a discussion in relation to both the Narrow and the bread views of
CSR and analyzing them in the light of Kant’s deontology ethics.
The paper emphasizes that the broad view of CSR is much more ethical as compared to
the narrow view in the light of ethical theories. The paper also emphasizes that what the UK
organizations are doing is not ethically correct.
Narrow view of CSR
It has been stated by Schwartz (2017) those organizations are formed for gaining profit.
When the incorporation of a company has been done for the purpose of only gaining profit its
primary responsibility is of making profit only rather than indulging in any other responsibility.
Thus the narrow view of CSR states that the organization should only focus on making profit and
not to care for the society as a whole. The view has been supported by Milton Friedman in his
book “Capitalism and Freedom (Friedman, 2009). It had been argued in this book that the
organizations should only focus on making profit and not to care for the society as a whole. On
the other hand the duty which is owed towards the society is owed by the shareholders of the
organization. This means that the shareholders who earn profit through the organization have to
duty of acting in the interest of the society. The profits they earn can be directed towards the
betterment of the society by themselves and not the organization. In addition it has been argued

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by Carroll (2015) that the organizations are subjected to several taxes by the government in
relation to their operations. This means that it is the duty of the government to utilize the taxes
paid by the organization towards the betterment of the society.
The organization should therefore not be subjected to an additional duty of CSR as such
duty is not imposed on a normal person with the society. In addition where the organization is
using various resources in relation to their operations which belong to the society and causing
harm to the society in way of pollution that are also paying additional money such as
environment taxes and resource use payments. Thus the organizations have no duty to indulge in
the betterment of the society. However the narrow views of CSR have been considerably
criticized by the proponents of non consequential ethics, environment supporters and proponents
of the bread view of CSR. In order to analyze the ethicalness of this view the Broad view needs
to be discussed. In the given situation the narrow view of CSR has been adopted by the
organizations in UK. This is because their major focus is on making profit rather than addressing
the needs of the society. In the given situation it has been provided that the organizations are
ignoring the problems faced by the workers in India and is only focusing on getting the products
at the lowest price. This is because there are facing stiff competition from competitors in UK to
provide cloths at low price and the demand of cloths are also significantly increasing in the high
street. In the given situation it can be stated that the actions of the UK organizations is justified
as per the narrow scope of CSR.
Broad view of CSR
As discussed above there are two divisions of CSR one is the narrow view and the other
is the broad view. This section of the report will discuss the broad view of CSR. The
organization exerts significant influence of the society with respect to the position held by them.
The power and influence which the organizations have in relation to the society has increased
significantly in the modern times where the economy has become considerably capitalist.
According to the view it is the duty of the organizations to behave in an ethical manner and also
ensure the interest of the society as it is one of its stakeholders. As the organization uses the
resources of the society and their operation significantly effects the environment is the duty of
the organization to act in a way which would restore the balance in the society. There are various

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benefits which an organization is subjected to when they indulge into CSR activities. It has been
stated by Steenkamp (2017) that the organizations under the bread concept of CSR as a tool of
advertisement. When the consumers are aware about the fact that the organization is making an
effort in relation to the society they feel good to be associated with such organization. In addition
when the society is aware that an organization bases its operations on ethical principles they are
more likely to have trust on the organization. The concept of broad view of CSR had been
brought to existence by Keith Davis. According to him it is not ethical for the businesses to base
their decision making only in relation to making profit. Businesses have the responsibility of
perceiving that the actions of the organization are going to have consequences of the society and
as a good citizen they have to ensure that they mitigate any losses which are caused to the society
because of their actions. There is a primary and secondary relationship which the organizations
have with several sections of the society and thus it is the duty of the organization to act as a
responsible citizen and ensure the benefit of the society as a whole (Ruggie, 2017).
In the given situation is seen that the organizations in UK do not adopt the broad view of
CSR. This is because their major focus is on making profit rather than addressing the needs of
the society. In spite of having knowledge that the workers in the Indian factories from where
work is sourced are being subjected to inhuman treatment they the UK retailers are still sourcing
their products for such factories. Their actions are having a significant impact on the workers as
the factory owners are making large profits and ignoring the needs of the workers. It can be
argued that if the retailers stop to outsource work form such factories then the situation of the
workers would be subjected to more detriment as they would not be able to get money to buy
their necessities. However this argument cannot be the basis on which the approach of the
retailers can be justified as there are several alternatives which are available.
Deontology ethics
Deontology ethics is an ethical decision making standard theory which has been provided
by Immanuel Kant (Kant, 2014). The theory is a non consequential theory based on categorical
imperatives (Kant, 2018). There are three elements which are provided by Kant in relation to
ethical making which are Universal law, Means of ends and good will. According to the theory it
is the duty of businesses to treat people as ends themselves and not as means of achieving the

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end (Bowie, 2017). Kant argues that if a person feels that the actions which he indulges in would
be correct even if the whole world indulges in the action than the actions would be considered as
ethically correct. On the contradiction where the person will have the knowledge that if everyone
indulging in the action would not be right for the society then the action is not morally correct
(Werhane, 2014). As per the theory of Kant no person should be exploited towards achieving a
purpose. When making a decision under deontology ethics the person has to know that who they
owe a duty to, what is the duty and is the duty being performed in a proper manner.
Consequences or outcome have no legal significance in relation to theory which means that
decision should never be based on the outcome. If the decision is in accordance to the duty owed
it should be taken regardless of the outcome of the decision.
How is the Broad view of CSR more ethical?
According to the deontology theory discussed above people should not be used a means
of end. In addition the theory provides that if a person feels that the actions which he indulges in
would be correct even if the whole world indulges in the action than the actions would be
considered as ethically correct. On the contradiction where the person will have the knowledge
that if everyone indulging in the action would not be right for the society then the action is not
morally correct. It has been provided by Carroll (2015) that the narrow view of CSR that
organizations are formed for gaining profit. When the incorporation of a company has been done
for the purpose of only gaining profit its primary responsibility is of making profit only rather
than indulging in any other responsibility. Thus the narrow view of CSR states that the
organization should only focus on making profit and not to care for the society as a whole. From
the meaning of the narrow view it can be stated that if every organization indulges in actions
which are done by the British clothing industry than it would not been good for the society. Thus
the narrow view of CSR is nit ethically correct as compared to the broad view which proposes to
mitigate any losses which have been caused to the society.
Ethical obligations of the UK retailers
In relation to the power dynamics which is provided to the manufacturers by the retailers
it can be stated that it is the duty of the retailers to ensure that the manufacturers act ethically
while managing the workers. In the given situation it can be stated that as the UK retailers are

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not ensuring the interest of the workers that are not acting ethically. They are using the workers
as a means of end rather than end themselves. The retailers have a duty towards the factory
workers as well as they are the stakeholders of their operations. They have to ensure that they
make the consumers aware about the situation and seek help from them through their
participation.
Conclusion
The paper has discussed views in relation to both narrow and broad view of CSR. It has
provided arguments for and against both the views of CSR. The paper through the discussion of
ethical theory of deontology comes to a conclusion that broad view of CSR is more ethical then
the narrow view of CSR. The retailers in UK are not doing must to support the workers who
have been subjected to significant detriment by the manufacturers. This is because they have
adopted a narrow view of CSR which is not ethically correct. As the retailers are not taking any
actions against the factory owners they are giving more powers to the factory owners to exploit
the workers.
Recommendations
The following recommendations have been made by the paper in relation to the issue:
1. The retailers have to ensure that they themselves verify the working condition which are
provided to the workers in the Indian factories and not rely on the statement of the
owners
2. The retailers have to raise the awareness of the consumers in relation to the issue so that
they understand the problem and their role towards addressing it. Once the consumers
have such knowledge they would not want to purchase products of organizations who
indulge in unethical practices.

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References
Bowie, N. E. (2017). Business ethics: A Kantian perspective. Cambridge University Press.
Carroll, A. B. (2015). Corporate social responsibility. Organizational dynamics, 44(2), 87-96.
Friedman, M. (2009). Capitalism and freedom. University of Chicago press.
Kant, I. (2014). What does it mean to orient oneself in thinking?. Daniel Fidel Ferrer, Verlag..
Kant, I. (2018). Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals (p. 409). Yale University Press.
Ruggie, J. G. (2017). The theory and practice of learning networks: Corporate social
responsibility and the Global Compact. In Learning To Talk (pp. 32-42). Routledge.
Schwartz, M. S. (2017). Corporate social responsibility. Routledge.
Steenkamp, J. B. (2017). Corporate Social Responsibility. In Global Brand Strategy (pp. 209-
238). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
Tai, F. M., & Chuang, S. H. (2014). Corporate social responsibility. Ibusiness, 6(03), 117.
Werhane, P. H. (2014). Moral imagination. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.