This document summarizes an unethical case study about McDonald's. It provides background on McDonald's history and business. It outlines key unethical issues like paying employees low wages, using deceptive child marketing, and providing unhealthy food ingredients. It analyzes the issues through utilitarianism, deontology, and virtue ethics frameworks and determines McDonald's is acting immorally. Recommendations include McDonald's reevaluating ingredients and the government enforcing food quality laws.

1. Unethical Case Study
23/01/2016
Business ethics
BUS 330
Vannapha Huy
Ty Chea
Techly Seng
Sovanna Suos
…………

2. Introduction
Business Background
Case outline
Stakeholders
Key Ethical Issues
Ethical Analysis
Conclusion & Recommendations
Content

3. Introduction

4. Ethics in general known as:
A system of moral
principle
Concerned what is
good for individuals
and society

5. Business Ethics…
Refers to an application of a moral principle of conduct to the
strategic and operational management of a businesses

6. Businesses need ethics due to…
Main factor during the
decision-making process
Build customer loyalty Retain good employees Avoid legal problems

7. Overview on a chosen business

11. Business background
 Founded in 1940 by McDonald’s family with the name of McDonald's BBQ
 Early products: burger, hot dogs…etc
 Renamed to McDonald’s in 1948
 Today’s menu includes chicken, salad, snack, desserts, coffee…
 Currently serves 36, 000 locations with about 69 million customers over 100 countries

13. Why do we choose McDonald’s for our
study?

15. Because…!!
• Developing Country
• Alert Cambodian people
• Healthy food

16. What are the unethical issues involved?
Case outline

17. Unethical Issues
Internal Unethical
Issue
Lower than minimum
wage
Prevent employees
to join labor union
Unhealthy
ingredients
External Unethical
Issue
Deceptive Marketing
to children
Using Charity as a
Mask to avoid Tax

18. Unhealthy ingredients
Too many
calories
Not enough
nutrition
Large amount
of sugar
Unhealthy fat
Highly
processed
Banned
ingredients

19. Stakeholders
Direct
Customers( Adults,
Children...)
Indirect
Government
Family
Companies

20. Why is it an ethical issue?
Key ethical issues

21. Too many
calories
Not enough
nutrition
Large amountof
added sugar
Unhealthy fat
Highly
processed
Banned
ingredients

22. McDonald’s Food
-too many calories, not enough nutrition-added
sugar & unhealthy fat- & highly processed
Consumers’ health:
-poor, overweight, obesity
-heart disease, diabetes & stroke
- Can no longer work
Companies in fast food sector:
-loses customers: people feel unsecure & switch
-this market may become less dynamic, less
profit, hire fewer staffs, unemployment rate.Their families
-lower incomes & saving
-higher expenses ( treatments)
-early labor force entry of their children
The company he works for loses a (good)
employee
Community & nation:
Income, welfare, happiness & healthiness
decline
Why is it an ethical issue?

23. Why is it an ethical issue?
Because the products they are selling causing their consumers
serious illness in the long run

25. Ethical analysis
The use of systematic methods of ethical examination, such as ETHICAL THEORY, in reasoning about
moral problems.

26. We think…it depends on their real purpose
If the purpose is to make more money by putting people well-being at risk for profit, it is
immoral.
If the corporation’s purpose is to make food affordable and/or solve the need of the
short-eating-time, then the company may not be immoral.
Bad quality control management v.s Greedy purpose towards the customers

27. So, how do we determine if they are
moral or immoral?

29. Ethical frameworks
Utilitarianism
Deontology
Virtue ethics

30. Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism
Deontology
Virtue ethics
Utilitarian people make decisions that produce better
consequences than alternatives. Ex. promotes human well-being:
the happiness, health, dignity and more.

31. Utilitarianism
The utilitarian perspective would find this unethical whether
McDonald’s have the good purpose or not. This is due to the
negative consequence, the public health issue.

32. Deontology
Utilitarianism
Deontology
Virtue
ethics
Deontology begins with the insight that as a matter of principle, we
should make some ethical decisions rather than consequences even if
it results in some bad consequences.

33. Deontology
If the means was really to help customers can afford food by
selling the cheap food, then the act of serving the food would be
moral.
If the means was to serve no quality food that make people ill for
profit, than it would be unethical.

34. Virtue ethics
Utilitarianism
Deontology
Virtue ethics
virtue ethics depends more on integrity and character of a person
who is making the decision.

35. Virtue ethics
 The managements and employees are responsible for maximizing profit for
their company, yet by providing harmful food, according to virtue ethics,
they are not moral of doing so. They did not act of what should have to be
done with integrity.

36. Conclusion
 Utilitarianism: Immoral ( consequences: public health issue)
 Deontology: Look at the mean
 Virtue ethics: Immoral

37. We believe that It is immoral for any business to serve a product or service
that may cause harm and at the expense of the society’s health and welfare.
McDonald’s is clearly at fault for the responsibility of producing and
maintaining a safe product to their customers.

38. Recommendations

39. Recommendation to the corporation
 Given that the cooperation operating in food industry, food safety should
be integrated into the company credo, value statement and code of
conduct.
 While the current products causes health issues, the cooperation should
reevaluate their ingredients.
 practicing CSR social web model.

40. Recommendation to the government
 The government should encourage and enforce on a legislation and quality
control of ingredients used in food products.

41. Recommendation for consumers
 Consumers should be health conscious,

43. សូ មអរគុណ