Business Ethics Case Study: Apple, Foxconn, and Labor Practices

This case study delves into the ethical implications of outsourcing, specifically focusing on the relationship between Apple and Foxconn. The assignment examines how outsourcing to reduce costs can impact the labor market and a company's ethical standards. It explores the potential for exploitation, the importance of monitoring supplier activities, and the responsibility of companies like Apple to ensure ethical practices throughout their supply chains. The study highlights the potential consequences of unethical practices, such as damage to brand image, and emphasizes the need for companies to balance cost-cutting with ethical considerations and sustainable practices. The case underscores the importance of ethical frameworks and the impact of outsourcing on the workforce, particularly in the context of global business operations and supply chain management.

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BUSINESS ETHICS
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1BUSINESS ETHICS
Outsourcing activities allows an organization in reducing the cost and risk that are involved in the
production or manufacturing process of a commodity (Ndubisi & Nygaard, 2018). In this connection, most
of the organizations take the initiative of outsourcing different function to the organizations with the purpose
of minimizing the risks related to the production process or maintaining the efficiency of the process design
due to the efficiency of the host organization. In this connection, the outsourcing activity of Apple while
partnering with Foxconn might be taken as the initiative towards improving the sustenance of the business
while improving the offerings.
However, from an ethical point of view, the organizations must take the initiative of monitoring the
activities that are undertaken by the supplier organizations while manufacturing the propositions (Hiquet &
Oh, 2019). For an instance, Apple Inc. might be held responsible for the sweatshop activities that Foxconn
undertook for assembling the commodities while exploiting the people. The absence of adequate monitoring
and supervision activities might result to the degradation of the brand image in the markets. After assessing
the different situations in the case of Apple, it might be concluded that the outsourcing activities allows an
organization in improving the overall activity of the organization while adhering to the common goals of
minimizing risks and empowering efficiency of activities. However, the absence of monitoring and
supervision related activities on the suppliers and imposition of sustainable policies on the same might
restrict an organization in adhering to the sustainable values or ethical frameworks.

2BUSINESS ETHICS
References
Hiquet, R., & Oh, W. Y. (2019). Ethics Issues in Outsourcing to Emerging Markets: Theoretical Perspectives
and Practices. Corporate Social Responsibility in Developing and Emerging Markets: Institutions,
Actors and Sustainable Development, 336.
Ndubisi, N. O., & Nygaard, A. (2018). The ethics of outsourcing: when companies fail at
responsibility. Journal of Business Strategy.