H.B. Fuller Case Study: Substance Abuse in the Street Children of Honduras
Running head: H.B FULLER IN HONDURAS
CASE STUDY: H.B. FULLER IN HONDURAS: sTREET CHILDREN AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE
MBA 5211: Organizational Ethics
CASE STUDY: H.B. FULLER IN HONDURAS: sTREET CHILDREN AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE Organizations are continually faced with ethical dilemmas. Though each dilemma may vary in degree of impact they will have on a company, it is essential that a company establish a wise solution to the problem. As we have gathered from this course, there are a large variety of views and theories on how to address these problems in the most ethical way. In this paper I will discuss the H.B. Fuller case in Honduras: Street children and drug abuse and examine the ethical challenges the company was presented with. I will further apply different theories and philosophical views on the decisions made.
Part I: Description of the Case H.B. Fuller Company is a St. Paul Minnesota based manufacturer of adhesives, sealants, and coatings used for a variety of different packaging and manufacturing applications. (H.B. Fuller Company, 2011) Kativo Chemical Industries, LTD (primarily a paint company) was acquired by H.B. Fuller Company, and in the early 1980’s they decided to enter into the adhesive business market in Latin America. Kativo felt like the adhesive market in Latin America lacked competitors, could be profitable and allow them to gain market share. In addition to this, they only hired local people with hopes of creating jobs and helping to improve the standard of living. “Resistol was the brand name for all adhesive products including water-based school glue”, in Honduras (Donaldson, 2008). Unfortunate to Kativo and H.B. Fuller, Resistol became the inhalant drug of choice among street children in Honduras. Since Resisol had gained such a stigma, and inhalants had become so popular among children in general, the common inhalant abusers on the street had become to be known by locals as “Resistoleros”. The unfortunate local slang
CASE STUDY: H.B. FULLER IN HONDURAS: sTREET CHILDREN AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE
MBA 5211: Organizational Ethics
CASE STUDY: H.B. FULLER IN HONDURAS: sTREET CHILDREN AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE Organizations are continually faced with ethical dilemmas. Though each dilemma may vary in degree of impact they will have on a company, it is essential that a company establish a wise solution to the problem. As we have gathered from this course, there are a large variety of views and theories on how to address these problems in the most ethical way. In this paper I will discuss the H.B. Fuller case in Honduras: Street children and drug abuse and examine the ethical challenges the company was presented with. I will further apply different theories and philosophical views on the decisions made.
Part I: Description of the Case H.B. Fuller Company is a St. Paul Minnesota based manufacturer of adhesives, sealants, and coatings used for a variety of different packaging and manufacturing applications. (H.B. Fuller Company, 2011) Kativo Chemical Industries, LTD (primarily a paint company) was acquired by H.B. Fuller Company, and in the early 1980’s they decided to enter into the adhesive business market in Latin America. Kativo felt like the adhesive market in Latin America lacked competitors, could be profitable and allow them to gain market share. In addition to this, they only hired local people with hopes of creating jobs and helping to improve the standard of living. “Resistol was the brand name for all adhesive products including water-based school glue”, in Honduras (Donaldson, 2008). Unfortunate to Kativo and H.B. Fuller, Resistol became the inhalant drug of choice among street children in Honduras. Since Resisol had gained such a stigma, and inhalants had become so popular among children in general, the common inhalant abusers on the street had become to be known by locals as “Resistoleros”. The unfortunate local slang
References: Burke, W. W. (2011). Organization Change Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications, Inc. Donaldson, T. a. (2008). Ethical Issues in Bussines: A Philosophical Approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Friedman, M. (1970, September 13). The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase Its Profits. The New York Times Magazine , pp. 122-126. H.B. Fuller Company. (2011). Company History. Retrieved June 15, 2011, from H.B. Fuller: http://www.hbfuller.com/latin-america/about-us/company-history. Marcoux, A. (2008, March 21). Business Ethics. Retrieved June 18, 2011, from Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: . Marcoux, A. (2000, July 24). Business Ethics Gone Wrong. Retrieved June 20, 2011, from Cato Institute: http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=4641