Why Is Walmart Unethical
The Lowest Price is Unethical
The worldwide corporation name, Wal-Mart, is best known for its endless selection of products for sale and their everyday lowest prices in town. Unfortunately these attractive characteristics arise from the act of breaking 18th century philosopher’s ethical theories. Wal-Mart is guilty of using their employees and suppliers as a mere means to an ends for the highest corporate profits possible each quarter. Their practices alienate their employees from their work efforts and break the principle formulation of act utilitarianism. Wal-Mart’s negation to these ethical theories shows that they need to be held accountable for treating their workers immorally.
A German philosopher by the name of, Immanuel Kant, developed two types of categorical imperatives in the late 18th century. He classified his first imperative as hypothetical which states; if you want something, then you have to do this to achieve it. To Kant this imperative was wrong because of its lack of moral value. This lead to the progression of his second type of categorical imperative, moral imperatives. Here he developed the idea that if you want something, then you ought to do this to achieve it. From here Kant realized three different types of moral imperatives; following the universal law, treating humans as ends in themselves, and acting as is you live in a “Kingdom of Ends”. With regards to his second moral imperative Kant states, “Never act in such a way as to treat people merely as a means to an end, but rather treat them as ends in …show more content…
Their imposition of Kant’s second imperative, their production of alienation, and their stand against the principle form of act utilitarianism shows an immoral relationship between Wal-Mart and its employees and suppliers. The way they treat their employees maximizes their profits at the cost of burdening
The worldwide corporation name, Wal-Mart, is best known for its endless selection of products for sale and their everyday lowest prices in town. Unfortunately these attractive characteristics arise from the act of breaking 18th century philosopher’s ethical theories. Wal-Mart is guilty of using their employees and suppliers as a mere means to an ends for the highest corporate profits possible each quarter. Their practices alienate their employees from their work efforts and break the principle formulation of act utilitarianism. Wal-Mart’s negation to these ethical theories shows that they need to be held accountable for treating their workers immorally.
A German philosopher by the name of, Immanuel Kant, developed two types of categorical imperatives in the late 18th century. He classified his first imperative as hypothetical which states; if you want something, then you have to do this to achieve it. To Kant this imperative was wrong because of its lack of moral value. This lead to the progression of his second type of categorical imperative, moral imperatives. Here he developed the idea that if you want something, then you ought to do this to achieve it. From here Kant realized three different types of moral imperatives; following the universal law, treating humans as ends in themselves, and acting as is you live in a “Kingdom of Ends”. With regards to his second moral imperative Kant states, “Never act in such a way as to treat people merely as a means to an end, but rather treat them as ends in …show more content…
Their imposition of Kant’s second imperative, their production of alienation, and their stand against the principle form of act utilitarianism shows an immoral relationship between Wal-Mart and its employees and suppliers. The way they treat their employees maximizes their profits at the cost of burdening