ETHICS, MORALITY AND BUSINESS ETHICS

In business, it's not all about numbers and profit. A good sense of character and connection to people are also
valued.

WHAT IS ETHICS?
 According to Jones, ten Bos, and Parker (2005), " ethics " came from the Greek word ethos, which means "
character, habit, dwelling place. " Clarence Walton (1998) reports that Aristotle derived the term ethics from
Ethos which, in turn, found its source in ethimos, which means " regularity and routine.
 Ethos or ethics may refer to one ' s character which is a product of what one does regularly and repeatedly so
that it has already become a routine.
 Ethics is also originally link with how one lives in relation with other people.

Mollie Painter-Morland concludes that ethics; "has both an individual and communal dimension. It requires, first and
foremost, the one takes care of oneself and learns to understand oneself. Only one conduct oneself appropriately in
one ' s interpersonal relationships and thus occupy one ' s rightful position in a community. "

ETHICS AS DISCIPLINE OR FIELD OF STUDY

 "Ethics, from the Greek word ethos, encompasses the study of moral problems, practical reasoning, right and
wrong, good and bad, virtues and vices, character, moral duty, and related issues involving the nature, origins,
and scope of moral values. Today, it is not uncommon for ethicists to specialize in medical ethics, business ethics,
environmental ethics, academic ethics, issues ethnicity and gender, and the nature of good life. Ethical issues
include truth telling, relativism, and universality. " (Socio, 2010)
 "Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with morality. Ethicists are concerned with a wide range of topics,
such as human nature; the meaning of life; the nature of value; and the workings of marally significant mental
states such as love, hate, greed, envy, indifference, pity desire, aversion, pleasure, and pain. Moral or ethical
theories offer the means of understanding significant elements in these and other areas of inquiry "(Finken
2008).
 "Ethics then becomes a practical science design to test logically the rightness or wrongness of human acts"
(Walton 1998).
 Ethics talks about how we behave and how we should behave as human beings different from animals, plants,
and other known creatures. It is a subject that reiterates and validates our authentic humanness and humanity.
It makes us realize again that man is a free-creature endowed with intellect and rationality. And it is from this
unique human features that our capacity to think, reason out, choose and decide flows abundantly.

WHAT IS MORALITY?
 Refers to one’s disposition, character, temperament, manners, customs, or the proper behavior of a person in
society.
 Used to signify "the sets of beliefs of an individual and/or system of principles and judgments shared by society,
culture, or community "(Shabana 2008).
 (Newton 2005) simplifies it by saying morality includes " rules and prima facie duties that govern our behavior as
persons to persons
These rules may include the following:
 Do not hurt people
 Do not tell lies
 Do not take more than your fair share
Morality- quality ofrightness and wrongness
Ethics- philosophical study of morality; the inquiry into the goodness or badness, rightness or wrongness, justness
and unjustness of human actions.
- One of major branches pf philosophy
WHAT IS BUSINESS ETHICS?
 is an applied ethics because it generally talks about the morally debatable issues in the field of business and
commerce.
Ethics is generally subdivided into three subfield;
1. Metaethics
2. Normative ethics
3. Applied ethics
METAETHICS
Focuses mainly on the investigation of the sources of our ethical principles.
NORMATIVE ETHICS
attemps to come up with those ethical principles that we can use to judge wether our actions are the right or
wrong.
APPLIED ETHICS
investigates morally debatable issues such as death penalty, the use of artificial contraceptives, euthanasia and
others.
Other applied ethics include;
 journalism ethics
 Ethics in finance
 Bioethics
 Legal ethics
 advertising ethics
 Ethics of health care
 Accounting ethics.

IMPORTANCE OF BUSINESS ETHICS

 One of the most important aims of an educational institution is to provide a venue and an avenue for
learners to intelligently discuss various principles and theories.
 According to our Edward Stevens (1979), Business decision can reflect a person’s worldview, philosophy in
life, and moral standards. A business decision, therefore, is necessarily an ethical decision. Business ethics is
to appreciate the unique status of the business institution in influencing and transforming the many
structures of our society.
 It is hoped that through the study of business ethics, future business leaders would be inspired to take on
the world of business guided by the principles learned in the course.
 “Belief Systems and the Conduct of Business”

The Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism

-Max Weber

HINDUISM
 Scholars agree that it is very difficult to extract codes from ethics for economic life in the Hindu tradition.
Brammer, Williams, and Zinkin (2007) said that "since it has a wide variety of cult, seets and philosophies,
[Hinduism] has no unified or philosophy from which prescriptions about economic issues can be clearly
established".

Main Principles that Guide the Hindu businessperson in the conduct of business:
FIRST
The Hindus have a positive outlook towards the business institution. According to Robert Solomon (2001),
“Hinduism has never expressed shame about the desire for wealth”.
Second
The Hindu businessperson must treat the business’ stakeholders with honesty and fairness.
THIRD
Hinduism’s belief in intolerance of the caste system may also shape the conduct of business.

"Caste system pertains to the social hierarchy in the Hindu society which also institutionalizes social rules and
jobs by caste rather than by merit or talent" (Brammer et al. 2007). According to Karishma Vaswani, the caste
system may become an opportunity for those in positions of power to exploit millions of lowercase Hindus who
were brainwashed into thinking that escaping from their station in life was impossible. The caste system was
already abolished through an Indian law in 1976. However, observed that it has continued to become a source of
discrimination in the workplace.

BUDDHISM
 believes in the interconnectedness and interdependence of things in the universe. Because policies and
decisions will surely affect the various stakeholders of the business organization. Thus, "because business are
integral part of the community, decision making cannot be reduced to profit without considering the impact of
people and environment" (Brown 2008).
Note:
Producing high pot value on spiritual liberation of a material will be. Thus, prophet as a purpose of business
must be seen in the larger context of being simply a mean rather than an end in itself. “Moreover, given that
materialism is not the ultimate goal in Buddhism but only a means to an end, prophets cannot be considered an
isolation; they ought to be subservient to the moral path rather than dominate and compromise it (Brown,
2008).
It must be emphasized that one of the central tenets of Buddhism is the overcoming human suffering. The
goal in Buddhism is to eliminate suffering, so allowing businesses to profit while exploiting people and polluting
the environment increases the amount of suffering and is counterproductive to the overall goal” (Brown 2008).

CONFUCIANISM
 is the ideal virtue of Ren, usually translated as "humaneness" or "benevolence". Each person must aspire to
attain Ren because it compasses other virtues such as kindness, trustworthiness, tolerance, courage, propriety.
For confucianism "The nature and duties of the human being must be studied diligently and cultivated, and
humanity is to be loved"

Another central virtue of confucianism is Li, usually translated as "propriety". Every member of the society
 belongs to a particular gender, social position, and social role. Li is the code of conduct that assures harmony
and respect toward each person's role in the society. "Ren and Li govern human relationship and underline civil
and harmonious Chinese society".
In light of this, Confucius distinguished between two types of individuals: Gentlemen whose conduct is
governed by moral principles and small men whose character is driven by profit." The successful business person
has not necessarily achieved the noble ideal of Ren. "Confucian ethics remind us that if the sole goal of business
activities is profit or wealth accumulation, that would run of confucian doctrine"

JUDAISM

Five Prominent terms in Jewish ethics explored by Pava (2008):

1. Right Action
2. Free Choice
3. Balance
4. Covenant
5. Dialouge

Good intention is important and the study of Torah is valuable, but pava said that Jewish ethics, there is a "clear
preference for appropriate action and good deeds". A good or a right act is certainly more valuable than the grandest
intention. The notion of corporate social responsibility is compatible with the principle of right action.
Pava also stated Jewish ethics dresses human freedom, which pertains to each person's inherent capability to
choose his or her course of action freely. Furthermore, it means that he or she is free to own private property as the
expected result of a moral business practice.
In addition, Pava asserted that Jewish Ethics highlights the importance of balance. " In Jewish thought, neither self-
less love nor selfish love is seen as ideal". Applying this to the contact of business, the business person must strike a
balance between the gaining of profit as a manifestation of love toward the self and his or her family, in the sharing
of profit as a manifestation of love toward other members of the society. Thus, there is a dynamic interaction
between individual freedom and his or her social obligation.

CHRISTIANITY
 is one of the most important sources of guidance for the Christians in the conduct of good business.

SOME OF THE MOST BIBLICAL THEMES THAT ARE OF RELEVANCE TO ONE’S CONDUCT OF THE BUSINESS:
1. COMMANDMENT TO LOVE ONE’S NEIGHBOR
2. VALUE OF HUMAN LABOR
3. NOTION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY

1. COMMANDMENT TO LOVE ONE’S NEIGHBOR

 Relevant for the Christian businessperson
 Does not mean, however, that the business person will no longer consider his or her personal interest to
gain profit and economic success.
 Does not mean to totally neglect one’s personal interest.
 It just means that the ruthless, excessive, and greedy pursuit of economic benefits cannot be a
characteristic of a Christian businessperson who is faithful to the biblical exhortation to love one’s neighbor.
2. VALUE OF HUMAN LABOR
 Importatnt biblical concept that must take into consideration.
 Creation story in Genesis conveys the message that God is an active worker in his creation.
 Through person’s active labor, human person participates in the work of creation and the building up of
God’s Kingdom here on Earth
  Human labor, therefore, has an inherent dignity.
 The challenge for us is to continue working to improve and perfect God’s unfinished creation.
 Avoid the aspects of human labor that are destructive
3. NOTION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY
 Relevant to the conduct of business.
 Under fair and just social relationships, the person who labors must enjoy the fruits of his or her labor.
 Private property is one of the manifestations of the person’s efforts, perseverance and industry. Thus, it
must be understood as a blessing from God.
 “Private property must always be understood in relation to God and to one’s neighbor”. It means that
private ownership cannot be understood apart from the notion of justice, social responsibility, and
environmental sustainability.

ISLAM
 has important things to say about the conduct of business.

First, it does not just uphold the value of business and trade. It even encourages the Muslims to participate in
business activities that are not against Islamic laws.
Second, the concepts pf halal and haram are very important considerations for the businesspersons.

Halal means "lawful" and Haram means "unlawful.

The lawfulness and unlawfulness derive from the clear guidelines and principles found in the Shariah, the Secret
Law or Islamic legal/social system.

The following are some business practices and conduct that are considered halal: (Mohammed 2023)
 legitimate earning
 trade contract with mutual consent
 truthfulness in business dealings
 trustworthiness in business matter
 generosity and leniency in business transaction
 honoring business obligations
 fair treatment of workers

The following are some business practices and conduct that are considered haram:
 all forms or interest (ribs0
 business activities involving prohibited items such as some forms of meat, statue, and alcoholic beverages.
 The sale of Al-Gharar (risk, speculation) such as insurance and other financial derivatives
 Indiscriminate price-fixing
 Hoarding of basic necessities such as food
 Exploitation of one’s ignorance of market conditions
 And fraud and trickery in business dealings (Ibid).
 BUSINESS ETHICS AND FILIPINO VALUES
Filipino who explore and touch on the theme of Filipino values
1. Vitaliano R. Gorospe
2. Thomas Andres
3. Felipe Landa Jocano
4. Virgilio Enriquez
5. Florentino Timberza
6. Emirita Quito

Alejo Jose Sison and Antonette Palma-Angeles

Wrote a paper that deals with business ethics and other Filipino Values

When talking about business ethics in the context of the Filipino values, we should keep in mind that we do not
claim that these values can be observed among all Filipinos. Furthermore, it does not mean that these values cannot
be found in the cultures of other societies. Vitaliano Gorospe (1994), a Filipino scholar of philosophy, said:
The difference lies in the way these elements are ranked, combined, or emphasized so that they take on a
distinctively Filipino slant or cast. For instance in China, honesty and hard work may rank highest; Chinese and
Japanese cultures give great value to politeness and beauty, American culture, to promptness and efficiency, and
Filipino culture to trust in God and family centeredness. In this sense of value ranking and priority of values, we
can speak of dominant Filipino values.

Sison and Palma-Angeles: Business Ethics in the Philippines

 Alejo Jose Sison and Antonette Palma-Angeles are two Filipino scholars who directly talk about business ethics in
the context of the Philippine experience. In their article titled "Business Ethics in the Philippines, they contend
that the Filipinos have a very peculiar understanding of business ethics. The two authors provide at least four
reasons why this is so plurality of languages and ethnicities, geographic fragmentation, predominant Roman
Catholic religion, and a relatively short experience on nationhood (Sison and Palma-Angeles 1997).
1. Geographic Fragmentation
 Geographic fragmentation pertains to the fact that the Philippine nation is also an archipelago that
consists of more than 7,100 islands. Because of the waters that separate the islands, it is difficult to
travel from one province to another. There is therefore lack of physical contact among Filipinos. It may
be one of the reasons why Filipinos belong to one nation yet the phenomenon of regionalism remains
highly prevalent
2. Linguistic and Ethnic plurality and differences
 There are more than 100 languages and dialects resulting from a myriad of ethnicities. The long
experience of colonization also brought the Spanish language and American English language into the
Philippine shores. At present, Filipino and English are recognized as the official languages.
 Sison notes that language is significant in business transactions.
 Sison and Palma-Angeles also note the significance of the Chinese language and ethnicity especially in the
world of business.
 In another study, Sison notes that language is significant in business transactions because when Filipino
businesspeople find our that they are dealing with a "kababayan" or somebody who comes from his or
her own region and speaks the same language, the business atmosphere softens up, trust is easily
established, and special favors may be given to the "kababayan" (Sison 1996).
 Sison and Palma-Angeles also note the significance of the Chinese language and ethnicity especially in
the world of business. If we search the Internet, we will easily find out that the richest people in the
Philippines today are Filipino-Chinese. Even if the Chinese are a minority group in the Philippines, they
are very influential especially in the business sector. The Chinese language can be then considered one
of the most important business languages in the Philippines.
3. Religion
 Religion also plays a vital importance for the Filipinos conduct of business. More than 90% of the
Filipinos are Christians and a large majority of these Christians belong to Roman Catholicism, Filipinos
are very religious people. The Ten Commandments, especially those that pertain to lying and stealing.
are important sources of guidance in business affairs Violation of these commandments is deemed to
be "kasalanan sa Diyos" or a sin against God (Sison and Palma-Angeles 1997).
4. Experience of Independent political life and nationhood
 The Philippines got its independence from Spain in 1898, but it was not actually a real independence
because the era of American colonialism immediately came in. Even if the Philippines is labeled as an
independent and sovereign nation today, the traces of American colonialism can still be found in the
many aspects of the society's culture, language, education, politics, mass media, business, and other
social institutions. The Filipinos colonial mentality has not been miraculously wiped out since the last
colonizer abandoned Philippine territory.
 Sison and Palma-Angeles also talk about the main ethical concerns of the Philippine society in relation
to business affairs. These concerns are rapid growth and liberalization of the economy. inequitable
distribution of wealth, environmental destruction, and corruption. Indeed, there is growth in the
economy, but this does not mean that majority of the Filipinos truly gain from this economic growth.
The widening gap between the rich and the poor is not reflected in the traditional measurements of
economic growth. Modern infrastructures, technological and communication innovations, and the rise
of commercial establishments in the various urban areas of the country cannot be accepted as
absolute indicators of genuine development.

JOCANO: FILIPINO VALUE SYSTEM

Felipe Landa Jocano (1930-2013) was a Filipino anthropologist, teacher, and scholar. As early as 1966, Jocano
and his associates started doing research on Filipino values.

Jocano says that a value is something positive and therefore desirable. Thus, there is no such thing as a negative
Filipino value. He says that that "there are only wrong uses of the values because our models for value-analysis are
Western-particularly those used by former colonizers and foreign observers" (Jocano 1997). There is a need,
therefore, to reevaluate our perception of Filipino values so that they can be channeled into something worthwhile
and meaningful for the lives of the Filipinos.

THE THREE BASIC ELEMENTS OF PAMANTAYAN/ VALUE

THE CORE TRAITS OF SUCCESFUL FILIPINO WORKERS
 Katiyagaan (patience)
 Katapatan (commitment)
 Kagitingan (integrity)
 Kasipagan (industriousness)
 Kapunyagian (perserverance)
 Katimpian (self - discipline)

Jocano defines success as "having achieved something that enhances one's way of life-either from one level of
satisfactory life to another or from a life of deprivation to one of comfort" (Ibid.).
Knowing Jocano's findings on the core traits of successful Filipino workers makes us aware that ethics is not just
about nonviolation of a list of ethical codes. Rather, an ethics is about practicing values that enhance our very
humanity.

Jocano also has a great contribution to relating the field of modern business management with the traditional
Philippine value system. In his book Towards Developing a Filipino Corporate Culture (1999), he argues that the
Western concept of business management necessarily clashes with Filipino culture because the former is generally
objective, impersonal, and organizational, while the latter is generally subjective, personal, and familial. Jocano says
that business managers must be able to find ways in order to consider the Filipino value system in the practice of
business relations (Jocano 1999).