Chairman of the philosophy department at Rockford College, Stephen Hicks is the author of a forthcoming book on business ethics.
Of the Institutions that have contributed to the quality of human life, business ranks with science, art, and education. Business has created the wealth that has given unprecedented numbers of individuals financial control of their lives. It has expanded immeasurably the range of goods and services available to individuals. It has broken down countless centuries-old barriers of racial, sexual, religious, and ethnic prejudice. And it has been the vehicle for countless numbers of individuals to develop their fullest potentials in achieving their dreams. In short, business has been a prime mover in making it possible for millions to pursue their lives in a wealthy, healthy, rational and exciting world.
Yet no other human institution has been so plagued by suspicions of immorality. "Business ethics," the old joke goes, "Isn't that a contradiction in terms?"
How moralists evaluate business depends upon their fundamental moral principles. Most moral philosophy has included the assumption that morality and practicality are two different things. Older moralists typically argued that the demands of morality conflicted with the requirements of business practicality, and so condemned business. More recent moralists tend to adopt a less extreme version of the dichotomy, holding that determining what is practical and what is moral involves following two distinct lines of thought, although what is moral and what is practical happen to coincide in many cases.
Since Objectivism is unique in its rejection of the traditional dichotomy of the moral and the practical, it offers a unique perspective on the full range of business ethics issues. Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, The Virtue of Selfishness, and Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal remain by far the best presentation of the broader moral context within which to evaluate the various dimensions of business practice.
The major issues in business ethics can be classified into four areas:
* The relationship between business and consumers
* The relationship between employers and employees
* The nature and value of special forms of business organization—most notably, that of the corporation
* The nature and value of financial markets
The issue of the proper scope of government regulation cuts across these four categories. Miscellaneous issues such as waste disposal ("the environment") and investing in morally dubious foreign nations (such as Communist China or Iraq) are often debated in the business ethics literature, but are primarily issues of political theory and so do not fit into the above business ethics categories.
