Ethics in Business
Being honest, being fair, treating workers well, not harming the environment; what makes a 'good' business; whether businesses should care about more than profit
What a learner can do afterwards
- Name at least two things that make a business ethical (fair wages, honest advertising, environmentally responsible)
- Explain why a business that only cares about profit might cause problems
- Describe a situation where a business owner faces an ethical choice and suggest what they should do
1 · Read
A business is more than a way to make money. You already know about supply chains. Ethics in business is the bigger idea behind that: doing the right thing even when no one is checking. A good business pays workers fairly, tells the truth in its ads, and tries not to harm the earth.
Ravi owns a small shirt factory. He could pay workers like Low Pay Co. does, or pay them fairly like Fair Pay Co. Ravi chooses the fair wage. He keeps a little less profit, but his workers stay longer, work harder, and tell others his factory is a good place to work. The same care reaches his flour farmers and other suppliers.
Businesses that lie to customers or harm the environment might earn a quick profit, but they lose people's trust. Trust keeps customers and workers coming back, and that is worth more than one big sale.
A good business treats workers, customers, and the earth fairly, even when it costs a little more.
The rewritten readings were written for this dataset.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.