Essay格式范文：Ethical Issues in Business: Accounting and Environmentalism
Essay格式范文-商業倫理問題：會計與環境保護主義。本篇留學生Essay旨在概述社會會計和社會報告的重要性，并對其進行深入解釋；就商業社會而言。使用蘋果公司作為案例研究和進一步參考，將允許對這些術語進行詳細分析，以使讀者更深入地理解。
社會會計和報告是衡量公司業績的一個重要因素，但沒有統一的定義。因此，如果這些術語沒有官方身份，我們可以問什么是社會會計和報告。社會會計和報告是一種僅根據數字來評估企業績效的方法。它考慮了其他利益相關者群體，而不僅僅是股東，因為它強調了企業對不同問題的責任的重要性。問題包括：；環境、地方和國家參與（慈善）。這篇留學生Essay范文包含以下三個部分，供參考。
Part A:
This section is to outline the importance of social accounting and social reporting and to define this with an in depth explanation; in terms of within a business society. The use of the company Apple as a case study and further references, will allow a detailed analysis of these terms, to give a deeper understanding to the reader.
Social accounting and reporting is a huge factor in measuring companies’ performances, however there is no single agreed definition. Therefore we could ask what actually is social accounting and reporting, if there is no official identity to the terms. Social accounting and reporting is a way of evaluating a business’s performance only on numerical figures. It takes into account other Stakeholder groups rather than just Shareholders, as it highlights the importance of a business responsibility to differing issues. Issues include; environmental, local and national involvement (charity).
This statement can be supported by many sources including; D. Crowther (2000) as he defines social accounting in this sense as “an approach to reporting a firm’s activities which stresses the need for the identification of socially relevant behaviour, the determination of those to whom the company is accountable for its social performance and the development of appropriate measures and reporting techniques.” [1] Another definition to identify the term “social accounting” comes from O,Dwyer (2006).
這一說法可以得到許多來源的支持，包括：；D、 Crowther將社會會計定義為“一種報告公司活動的方法，強調需要識別與社會相關的行為，確定公司對其社會績效負責的人，并制定適當的措施和報告技術。“確定“社會會計”一詞的另一個定義來自O，Dwyer。
However he defines the term from the perspective of an accountant stating “social accounting scholars are a group of individuals with ‘commitment to stakeholder accountability and democracy’”.[2] However this is not always be case, as social accounts may be biased for different reasons. Accountant’s desire for work fees could lead them to saying things which aren’t completely true, which can cause huge legitimacy problems. Secondly social accounting can also be recognised as a contributing factor of many social conflicts and disputes. This links to Apple as looking at the report “Apples un-kept promises”; we can see that legitimacy problem have arisen, from the claims made in their progress report. Apple claims: “We don’t tolerate underage labour. Our code requires our suppliers to provide special treatment to juvenile workers.”[3] However the China labour watch disclosed in their report ‘Apples un-kept promises’; that within 2 factories they found many underage workers and employment right were minimal or even non-existent.
然而，他從會計師的角度定義了這個術語，指出“社會會計學者是一群‘致力于利益相關者問責制和民主’的個人”。然而，情況并非總是如此，因為社會賬戶可能因不同原因而存在偏見。會計師對工作費的渴望可能會導致他們說一些不完全真實的話，這可能會導致巨大的合法性問題。其次，社會會計也可以被視為許多社會沖突和糾紛的促成因素。這與蘋果公司在看“蘋果未兌現承諾”的報告有關；我們可以從他們在進度報告中提出的主張中看到，合法性問題已經出現。蘋果聲稱：“我們不容忍未成年勞工。我們的法規要求我們的供應商為未成年工人提供特殊待遇。”然而，中國勞工觀察在其報告中披露了“蘋果不遵守承諾”；在兩個工廠內，他們發現許多未成年工人和就業權利微乎其微，甚至根本不存在。
However social accounting may seem a positive driver for pleasing numerous Stakeholders, nevertheless it still has its disadvantages as a performance measure. Stuart Cooper (2004) “Social and environmental accounting is flawed as it does not address the problem of the capitalist system”. This suggests that as long as money is the main objective in companies, they will never be legitimate with its social accounting objectives. Apple are a company which seem to adopt a capitalist culture, due to evidence discovering the length of working hours and the wage workers receive. “Working hours are too long, with 7-day weeks, shifts exceeding 12 hours and 80 hours of overtime a month not uncommon. It appears that “falsified attendance records” help disguise the real figures”. [4] Further from this the pay rate is at only ‘$1.20 per hour’.
然而，社會會計似乎是取悅眾多利益相關者的積極驅動因素，但作為績效衡量標準，它仍有其缺點。斯圖爾特·庫珀“社會和環境會計是有缺陷的，因為它沒有解決資本主義制度的問題”。這表明，只要金錢是公司的主要目標，它們就永遠不會符合其社會會計目標。蘋果公司是一家似乎采用資本主義文化的公司，因為有證據表明員工的工作時間和工資待遇。“工作時間太長，每周7天，輪班超過12小時，每月加班80小時，這并不罕見。看來，“偽造的出勤記錄”有助于掩蓋真實數字。”。此外，工資僅為“每小時1.20美元”。
Looking at Grey, Owen, Adams theory of social responsibility stances we can see that Apple clearly adopts an expedients approach, as they only proposed changes in 2012 (the progress report), to rebuild their tattered reputation. The report “un-kept promises” published by the China Labour Watch, showed how all promises mentioned in the progress report, to better employment rights and increase interests with different Stakeholder groups, were shattered, as independent enquiries were made to show that workers were receiving less than adequate treatment, for example no action was made to better environmental issues.
看看格雷、歐文和亞當斯關于社會責任立場的理論，我們可以看到，蘋果顯然采取了權宜之計，因為他們只是在2012年提出了改變（進展報告），以重建其支離破碎的聲譽。中國勞工觀察組織發布的《未兌現的承諾》報告顯示，進展報告中提到的改善就業權利和增加與不同利益相關者群體的利益的所有承諾都遭到了破壞，因為進行了獨立調查，表明工人得到的待遇不足，例如沒有采取行動改善環境問題。
To conclude social accounting is an important measure for all businesses. However its importance differs in different ways, as some businesses only accepts social responsibility as long as it benefits them. However some companies genuinely put the importance of social responsibility, before profits and reputation, these companies usually take a deep ecologist view to responsibility and include companies such as Greenpeace. Overall social responsibility is mainly adopted for self-benefits, and this is where the term “Green wash” has emerged.
總結社會會計是所有企業的一項重要措施。然而，它的重要性在不同方面有所不同，因為一些企業只接受社會責任，只要它對他們有利。然而，一些公司真的把社會責任的重要性放在了利潤和聲譽之前，這些公司通常對責任持深刻的生態學家觀點，包括綠色和平等公司。總體社會責任主要用于自我利益，這就是“綠色洗滌”一詞出現的地方。
Part B:
This part of the essay outlines what is meant by the term ‘ethical issues’, giving an understanding of the two theories ethical relativism and ethical absolutism. The report is also to highlight the importance of ethics within companies, and give justification for its importance. Furthermore the use of Apple articles and further references will allow an assessment to be made, and assumptions on Apples performance to these matters will be highlighted. The use of different viewpoints from varying Stakeholders will make the reports analysis more solid, as this will allow advantages and disadvantages to be seen in differing scenarios, rather than just seeing the benefits/negatives of main Shareholders.
本文的這一部分概述了“倫理問題”一詞的含義，對倫理相對主義和倫理絕對主義這兩種理論進行了理解。該報告還將強調公司內部道德的重要性，并為其重要性提供理由。此外，使用蘋果公司的文章和進一步的參考資料將允許進行評估，并強調蘋果公司在這些問題上的表現假設。使用不同利益相關者的不同觀點將使報告分析更加可靠，因為這將允許在不同場景中看到優點和缺點，而不僅僅是看到主要股東的優點/缺點。
Ethical issues are mainly defined through two different theories; either relativism or absolutism. Ethical absolutism is a theory where something is only right or wrong, it does not consider any other situations or scenarios. On the other hand Ethical relativism this theory were nothing is categorically right or wrong, as it is mainly relies on the circumstances of an individual, culture, beliefs or emotions. Therefore there is more tolerance on positive or negative actions that may be seen as immoral due to the moral absolutism theory.
倫理問題主要通過兩種不同的理論來定義；相對主義或絕對主義。道德絕對主義是一種理論，其中某些事情只對或錯，它不考慮任何其他情況或場景。另一方面，道德相對主義——這一理論沒有絕對正確或錯誤，因為它主要取決于個人的環境、文化、信仰或情緒。因此，由于道德絕對主義理論，對可能被視為不道德的積極或消極行為有更多的寬容。
Looking at Apples Progress Report for 2012 outlines, how Apple have managed ethical matters to suite many Stakeholders involved within the company, demonstrating strong cooperate responsibility. Many statements are made within report; differing amongst Stakeholder groups, however the quote “We require that our suppliers provide safe working conditions, treat workers with dignity and respect, and use environmentally responsible manufacturing processes wherever Apple products are made.” [5] This statement evidently indicates the importance of the employee, pressure groups and environmentalists to the Apple brand; this analytically shows good responsibility to these stakeholders welfare. However contrasting this other sources have indicated that Apple has not complied with many of the statements they have made, regarding their ethical responsibility. A report called the ‘Other Side of Apple’ by the Friends of nature, the IPE and green Beagle (2011) found that “it was discovered that Lian Jian Technology had environmental violations, as they “did not carry out the appropriate measures which resulted in hazardous waste material run off.
看看蘋果公司2012年的進展報告，蘋果公司如何管理道德問題，以滿足公司內部的許多利益相關者，顯示出強大的合作責任。報告中有許多陳述；然而，在利益相關者群體中，“我們要求我們的供應商提供安全的工作條件，以尊嚴和尊重的態度對待員工，并在生產蘋果產品的任何地方使用對環境負責的制造工藝。”這一聲明明顯表明了員工、壓力團體和環保人士對蘋果品牌的重要性；這從分析上表明了對這些利益相關者福利的良好責任。然而，與此形成對比的是，其他消息人士表示，蘋果沒有遵守他們所做的許多關于道德責任的聲明。自然之友、IPE和達爾問自然求知社發布的一份名為“蘋果的另一面”的報告發現，“發現聯建科技存在環境違法行為，因為他們”沒有采取適當措施，導致危險廢物流失。
They also had not filled out the hazardous waste transfer manifest documentation.” [6] From this we can evidently assume that Apple have minimal interest in changing practices to make them more environmentally friendly, they’d rather pay heavy fines. As changing practices would be costly and may affect the annual profits of Apples displeasing the Shareholders. This indicates that social responsibility is only implemented for the interest of Apple. Similarly according to a report from the China Labour watch show cased many ethical issues involving employees throughout all three factories, issues such as; an immense number of underage workers were discovered and of which did not receive any exceptional protection/treatment in comparison to workers of age. They were made to work within the same conditions and hours of employees of legal age. Additionally all workers were made to sign documents to falsify the hours that they do, therefore breaking employment regulations.
他們還沒有填寫危險廢物轉移清單文件。”從這一點上，我們可以明顯地假設，蘋果對改變做法以使其更環保的興趣微乎其微，他們寧愿支付高額罰款。因為改變做法成本高昂，可能會影響蘋果公司的年度利潤，令股東們不快。這表明社會責任只是為了蘋果的利益而實施的。同樣，根據《中國勞工觀察》的一份報告，該節目調查了三家工廠員工的許多道德問題，如：；發現了大量未成年工人，其中與成年工人相比，未成年工人沒有得到任何特殊保護/待遇。他們被要求在與法定年齡員工相同的條件和時間內工作。此外，所有工人都被要求簽署文件，偽造他們的工作時間，因此違反了就業規定。
However overseas employment is greatly important to many less economically developed countries, Apple provides an income for their employees, as well as giving them opportunities to learn new skills, and increasing their life satisfaction. A Case Study involving Man Power to recruit a workforce force from the Monga-hit region of Rangpur, supports this as “the government assigned a quota to send 18000 poor people from the Monga-hit region comprising greater Rangpur to overseas countries with job.” [7] As well as offering “loans to poor youths of the Monga-hit region consisting of greater Rangpur for overseas employment.” [8] This shows the importance of companies being overseas, as governments of these less developed countries heavily encourage inward investment, as it benefits them in many ways; as the government gain more taxation to improve public services, as well as less dependency on them for income. Shareholders will also benefit as wages are much lower overseas, therefore increased profits could be made, increasing dividends.
然而，海外就業對許多經濟欠發達國家來說非常重要，蘋果公司為員工提供了收入，也為他們提供了學習新技能的機會，提高了他們的生活滿意度。一項涉及人力資源的案例研究支持了這一點，即“政府分配了一個配額，將包括大朗布爾在內的蒙加受災地區的18000名貧困人口送往海外有工作的國家。”以及“向包括大朗普爾在內的蒙加受災地區貧困青年提供海外就業貸款”。“這表明公司在海外的重要性，因為這些欠發達國家的政府大力鼓勵外來投資，因為這在很多方面對他們有利；隨著政府增加稅收以改善公共服務，同時減少對公共服務的收入依賴。股東也將受益，因為海外的工資要低得多，因此可以增加利潤，增加股息。
To conclude Apples performance towards its promises to alter social issues, have been extremely poor. As evidence through investigations by the Chinese Labour Watch and a report from the Friends of nature, IPE and Green Beagle all have identified many issues involving numerous Stakeholders, including: employees, environment and its suppliers, where all parties were suffering from the production of Apple products. However on the other hand these factories do play an important role economically to the countries. As they provide employment to very low-skilled people, and most likely pay better wages than competitors. As well, governments promote inward investment into countries like these, as they financially aid the country through additional taxes, as well as a reduction in the unemployed, therefore less dependence on the government for survival. This view is supported by the Case Study on Manpower. Overall for Apple to be socially responsible they do need to address ethical issues that have been mentioned, as eventually them only providing the advantage and employment to a country won’t be enough. In the future more damage could be made environmentally, costing the government large amounts of money.
總之，蘋果在改變社會問題的承諾方面的表現非常糟糕。通過中國勞工觀察組織的調查和自然之友組織的一份報告，IPE和達爾問自然求知社都發現了涉及眾多利益相關者的許多問題，包括：員工、環境及其供應商，所有各方都在蘋果產品的生產中受苦。然而，另一方面，這些工廠在經濟上對這些國家起著重要作用。因為他們為技術水平很低的人提供就業機會，而且很可能支付比競爭對手更高的工資。此外，政府還促進對這些國家的外來投資，因為它們通過增加稅收以及減少失業人數來為國家提供財政援助，從而減少了對政府生存的依賴。人力資源案例研究支持這一觀點。總的來說，蘋果要想對社會負責，他們確實需要解決已經提到的道德問題，因為最終他們只為一個國家提供優勢和就業機會是不夠的。在未來，環境可能會受到更多的破壞，這將使政府損失大量資金。
Part C:
This part is to outline why companies might possibly report on environmental responsibility, it is argued many only report on these issues for business case reasons. Furthermore an analysis on what is meant by the term business case will be made, through the use of differing definitions from a range of sources. Applying apple to principles to help understand why companies report on environmental issues and what impact business case reasons has on a company, this will give a greater understanding of the importance of business case, as it will give more personalised answers as Apple may have a differing situation/position to other companies. Also using an existing company to show proposed changes, will lead to a sustainable planet. Finally there will be an explanation on what is understood by the term “Greenwash”, using multiple references and also demonstrating how it distresses particular Stakeholders.
這一部分是為了概述為什么公司可能會報告環境責任，有人認為，許多公司只是出于商業案例的原因才報告這些問題。此外，還將通過使用來自一系列來源的不同定義，對商業案例一詞的含義進行分析。將蘋果應用于原則，以幫助理解公司為什么報告環境問題以及商業案例原因對公司的影響，這將使人們更加了解商業案例的重要性，因為它將提供更個性化的答案，因為蘋果可能與其他公司的情況/立場不同。此外，利用現有公司展示擬議的變化，將導致一個可持續的地球。最后，將對“綠色洗滌”一詞的含義進行解釋，使用多個參考文獻，并說明其對特定利益相關者的影響。
Companies that do things to reflect environmental responsibility but however only do them to in fact increase profitability, sales and even reduce waste to only reduce unit price of products, are only doing these things for business case reasons. Whereas if companies actually take a moral responsibility to environmental practices i.e. reduce their carbon emissions, they are doing this for ethical reasons instead of business case reasons. Therefore business case reasons highlight that companies only demonstrate an environmental policy to maintain a good reputation, however the practices they change/implement is done only to benefit themselves. However according to a report “beyond the business case” by Thomas Dyllick and Kai Hockerts they state “A single-minded focus on economic sustainability can succeed in the short run; however, in the long run sustainability requires all three dimensions to be satisfied simultaneously.” [9] This statement suggests those businesses that only concentrate on business case issues, intending to make changes to gain economic advantages; this will not benefit them in the long run. As mentioned they need to focus on all three dimensions which include; economic, ecological and social aspects.
那些為了反映環境責任而做的事情，但實際上只是為了提高盈利能力、銷量，甚至減少浪費以降低產品單價的公司，只是出于商業原因才做這些事情。然而，如果企業實際上對環境實踐承擔道義責任，即減少其碳排放，那么他們這樣做是出于道德原因，而不是商業案例原因。因此，商業案例的理由強調，公司只展示環境政策以保持良好的聲譽，然而，他們改變/實施的做法只是為了使自己受益。然而，根據托馬斯·迪利克和凱·霍克特的一份“超越商業案例”的報告，他們表示“專注于經濟可持續性可以在短期內取得成功；然而，從長遠來看，可持續性需要同時滿足所有三個維度。”，打算做出改變以獲得經濟優勢；從長遠來看，這對他們沒有好處。如上所述，他們需要關注所有三個方面，包括：；經濟、生態和社會方面。
Therefore, for a business to be a success they need to take into account environmental and social issues. This statement links to Apple as evidence suggests that Apple heavily focuses on economic issues, however neglecting ecological and social issues, which affects a vast majority of Stakeholders, and the reputation of the business. A report called the ‘Other Side of Apple’ by the Friends of nature, the IPE and green Beagle (2011) identified many environmental issues within the company which affected many internal Stakeholders. For example in the Lain Jian factory they used an alcohol based solution to clean screens and other parts within the construction of their products. However Apple changed its process “In August, 2008, however, W (Suzhou) suddenly began requiring its employees to replace the alcohol-based cleaner with n-hexane. When interviewed, workers at the factory stated that n-hexane evaporated much more quickly than the alcohol-based cleaner, thereby increasing their efficiency rate.” [10] But controversially Apple didn’t recognise the dangers of this solution, by not reporting the change to the authorities this violated China‘s a€?Law on the Prevention and Control of Occupational Diseases. Not only this, it affected the health of many employees in the company, as it is a poison it left many sick, as the chemical can cause unresponsiveness of limbs. “Many of the employees at Lian Jian Technology have been falling sick”, “According to hospital tests and the doctors ‘diagnosis, these employees ‘upper and lower peripheral nerves had been damaged” [11]
因此，企業要想成功，需要考慮環境和社會問題。這一聲明與蘋果公司有關，因為證據表明，蘋果公司嚴重關注經濟問題，但忽視了生態和社會問題，這影響了絕大多數利益相關者和企業聲譽。自然之友、IPE和綠色小獵犬發布的一份名為“蘋果的另一面”的報告指出了公司內部的許多環境問題，這些問題影響了許多內部利益相關者。例如，在萊因建工廠，他們使用基于酒精的解決方案來清潔屏幕和產品結構中的其他部件。然而，蘋果改變了流程。”然而，2008年8月，W（蘇州）突然開始要求員工用正己烷替換酒精基清潔劑。工廠的工人在接受采訪時表示，正己烷的蒸發速度比酒精基清潔更快，從而提高了效率。“但有爭議的是，蘋果沒有意識到這一解決方案的危險性，因為沒有向當局報告這一變化違反了中國的《職業病防治法》。不僅如此，它還影響了公司許多員工的健康，因為它是一種有毒物質，導致許多人患病，因為這種化學物質會導致四肢無反應。“連健科技的許多員工都生病了”，“根據醫院檢測和醫生的診斷，這些員工的上下周圍神經受損”
This clearly shows major environmental and social issues in Apple, and how the importance of increased efficiency was more important, than ensuring the safety of its employees. A lot of employees form this incident decided to leave the company, as it was unsafe for them to work there. They received little compensation, and many of employees had to leave as they were given no other option, leaving them unemployed again and vulnerable as their skill set is minimal. Therefore Apples business case, really need altering as this undoubtedly demonstrates the importance of having all three dimensions (economical, ecological and social) as mentioned in the report “beyond the business case”.
這清楚地表明了蘋果的主要環境和社會問題，以及提高效率的重要性比確保員工安全更重要。這起事件中的許多員工決定離開公司，因為他們在那里工作是不安全的。他們幾乎得不到補償，許多員工不得不離開，因為他們沒有其他選擇，這讓他們再次失業，因為他們的技能水平很低。因此，蘋果的商業案例確實需要改變，因為這無疑證明了報告中提到的“超越商業案例”的所有三個維度（經濟、生態和社會）的重要性。
Greenwashing is a tool which a lot of major companies use to make them appear that they take responsibility for environmental issues, but in real terms they don’t; they only publish what they do to enhance their business reputation and brand image, which could possibly increase profitability and sales. It’s only done for self-interests. This is supported by a view from greenwashingindex.com as they state “It’s greenwashing when a company or organization spends more time and money claiming to be “green” through advertising and marketing than actually implementing business practices that minimize environmental impact. It’s whitewashing, but with a green brush.” [12]
綠色洗滌是一種工具，許多大公司用它來讓他們看起來對環境問題負責，但實際上他們并沒有；他們只發布他們為提高商業信譽和品牌形象所做的事情，這可能會提高盈利能力和銷售額。這只是為了自己的利益。他們表示：“當一家公司或組織花費更多的時間和金錢通過廣告和營銷聲稱自己是“綠色”的，而不是實際實施將環境影響降至最低的商業實踐時，這就是綠色清洗。這是粉刷，但用的是綠色的刷子。”
Overall from the evidence gathered about business case reasons, which are now known as actions that only benefit the company i.e. increased profits? Are a big tool used in companies, however this continuous approach to only look at economic advantages does not benefit companies in the long-run. As from the report ‘Other Side of Apple’ by the Friends of nature, the IPE and green Beagle, showed how they only focused on economic benefits through replacing a cleaning solution, which increased efficiency, however it led to huge pay-outs and loss of many employees, meaning large costs and a tattered reputation. This highlights that the view of needing to concentrate on all 3 dimensions, by Thomas Dyllick and Kai Hockerts is grossly important. This leads to the view of Greenwashing, many companies use this tool to appear environmentally involved, but only for self-interests, such as increased brand image and reputation, as well as the possibility of more sales. To conclude companies to succeed in the future need to really take on board the importance of environmental and social issues for them to be a success. As these responsibilities are becoming more important to consumers, and other Stakeholders in this day and age.
Essay從收集到的有關商業案例原因的證據來看，這些原因現在被稱為只對公司有利的行為，即利潤增加？是公司使用的一個重要工具，然而這種只關注經濟優勢的持續方法并不能從長遠來看對公司有利。正如《自然之友》的報告《蘋果的另一面》所述，IPE和達爾問自然求知社展示了他們如何通過更換清潔解決方案來關注經濟效益，從而提高了效率，但這卻導致了巨額支出和許多員工的損失，這意味著高昂的成本和支離破碎的聲譽。這突出表明，托馬斯·迪利克和凱·霍克茨認為，需要關注所有三個維度是非常重要的。這影響了Greenwashing的觀點，許多公司使用這一工具來表現出環保意識，但只是為了自身利益，例如提高品牌形象和聲譽，以及增加銷售的可能性。要使公司在未來取得成功，就必須真正認識到環境和社會問題對公司成功的重要性。隨著這些責任在當今時代對消費者和其他利益相關者越來越重要。本站提供各國各專業Essay代寫或指導服務，如有需要可咨詢本平臺。
