Unethical decisions result from an individual’s choice rather than their work environment.” Critically discuss.
Unethical decisions are decisions that aren’t influenced by any moral compass as they are solely catered towards the individuals self interests. Unethical decisions certainly do result mostly from ones work environment rather than an individual’s choice. Individuals choice does have an impact on the decision making process however ultimately when an unethical decision is chosen and partaken up on it is always comes down to pressures from ones work environment. Even the most ethical oriented business or managers vision will inevitably adjust and bends due to unpleasant and stressfull circumstances. For example, one of the most ethical individuals may change how or why they do something if they are pressed for time, or if they are overwhelmed, or overly un happy. (Stealing may become borrowing because at that moment the believe they will return it.)Aspects of a managers work environment that will be discussed which can lead to unethical decisions include Economic prosperity, Technological and competitors.

Economic prosperity refers to a thriving condition, especially in financial terms in which the overall business has access to a sufficient supply of resources and is generating enough income to maintain such a supply. Most Management decisions are catered towards building or maintaining large income flows in order to sustain or allow for business expansion. As a result Unethical decisions may result as unethical choices may offer certain shortcuts towards income gains that ethical choices may not provide (Awasthi Vidya 2008). For many businesses a popular way to fulfil profit maximisation is to partake upon expense minimisation schemes, as consequences many businesses choose partake on unethical activities such as outsourcing, downsizing, and lowering product/service quality. For most managers the most unethical expense minimisation strategies tend to be the most effective, and when presented with circumstance such as increased company tax, decreased sale revenue and increased loan-interest managers are forced towards unethical choices in order to sustain the survival of their business. Economic recessions further cement the fact that unethical choices result from ones work environment and not due to individual choices, economic recessions are general slowdown in economic activity resulting in a decrease of GDP, household income, business profits, employment and increase in inflation. As a result of recessions even the most ethically driven managers and their businesses are forced to participate in unethically deemed decisions.
Technology is part of the work environment that utilises the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry. Many technological innovations have benefited humanity facilitating the way for more ethical decisions .Technology however has also allowed managers to carryout a growing number of unethical decisions such as pollution dumping, overbilling etc as technologies such as robotics, computer systems, internet/social media, non-renewable fuels and more etc allow managers to make unethical decesions more comfortably and discreetly. As disused before Businesses and their managers inherently put the needs of their business before the needs of society, especially when put in difficult situations. As a result Managers will not engage in unethical decision because of their individual choices but because certain technologies enable them to very do so. Certain unethical decisions such as customer surveillance involve when companies partake in unauthorised disclosure of customer information to third parties for monetary gain. Therefore certain unethical decision are impossible without the use of technologies such as data transactions and telecommunications ____ etc. Likewise highly distasteful actions such as pollution dumping would not be possible without the use of industrial technologies such as nuclear, gas or coal power , irrespective of the matter individual choices would play neglible part as these unethical acts could have not be done without the very use of these technologies. For example well know unethical acts such as (Martin, Kirsten E. 2004) Chevrons illegal dumping of 18.5 billion gallons of highly toxic waste sludge into Ecuadorian streams and rivers that local depended on for food and living. This social undesirable outcome obviously did involve individual choice but couldn’t have even occurred in first place without industrial mining technologies that produced the toxic sludge in the first place.

Competitors in the work environment are more likely to play a larger effect then ones individual choice in formulating unethical decisions. Competitors are business rivals in the same market supplying a particular good or service which offers buyers an identical or similar product. Numerous competing businesses in an overly crowded industry can force managers to engage in certain unethical decisions/practices in order to gain a completive advantage. In some industries such as supermarket chains competitors are often separated by less than 1-5% in market share ownage and are required in engage in social irresponsible strategies such as predatory pricing, product counterfeit , child labour. Predatory pricing is a pricing strategy where a product or service is set at a very low price, intending to drive competitors out of the market, or create barriers to entry for potentially new competitors. These unethical decisions as things go are a result of pressure from work environment forcing business increase their revenue or otherwise accede their hard earned market share to other businesses , as a result of predatory pricing many smaller businesses close down.This is furthermore express showcased in highly competitive markets in China where businesses are hiding profit to gain completive advantages despite social undesirable outcome.( Hongbin Cai† 2005) Profit hiding in China is socially unproductive, but can save costs for firms and hence increase their net profits as result profit hiding can potentially be used by firms as a cost-saving device to gain a competitive advantage.

Individual choices refers to picking a decision influenced by self- virtues with in one’s personality. Individual traits do play a role in unethical decision making, however most unethical decisions are still solely based around pressures from ones environment. This can examined in certain major personality influences such as ones ego, ego refers to a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance. Ego can cause managers and other individuals partake in social undesirable tactics in circumstances in which their self-worth and integrator is at risk(J. Graafland 2010). But nevertheless these circumstances that put managers in position to preserve their ego wouldn’t result if it wasn’t due to pressures from their work environment such as meeting forecasted sales, unreasonable work deadlines, __etc.

Most Businesses act in financial self-interest in order to preserve and sustain a successful business and as result social interests will sometimes be neglected (Rode,Julian & Hogarth, 2008). Unethical decisions do result from ones work environment as pressures such Economic Prosperity, technology and competitors play and have a much larger role and impact on unethical decisions than ones individual choice.

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J. Graafland,(2010)"Do Markets Crowd Out Virtues? An Aristotelian Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(1), pages 1-19,.

Klaus-Michael Menz, (2010)"Corporate Social Responsibility: Is it Rewarded by the Corporate Bond Market? A Critical Note," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 96(1), pages 117-134.

Baron R.(2014) “Personal Motives, Moral Disengagement, and Unethical Decisions by Entrepreneurs: Cognitive Mechanisms on the “Slippery Slope”, Journal of business ethics, Vol.102, pages 32
Awasthi, Vidya (2008) “Managerial Decision-Making on Moral Issues and the Effects of Teaching Ethics”, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 78, p207-223.

Cai, Hongbin and Liu, Qiao and Xiao, Geng,(2005)” Does Competition Encourage Unethical Behavior? The Case of Corporate Profit Hiding in China” ,pp 2-4
Martin, Kirsten E. (2004)“The Separation of Technology and Ethics in Business Ethics” ,Journal of Business Ethics Part 2, Vol. 53, p353-364.