...Michael Pedrahita Business Ethics Prof. Lacey 2/6/2014 Unocal Case Simac 1. The United Oil Company of California (Unocal) made the decision in the 1990’s to invest in energy projects outside of the United States and chose to invest in the “Yadana field” pipeline. There are many stakeholders involved in the international “Yadana Field” natural gas project. Unocal, Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Co., Total S.A., and the Burmese government (Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise) along with the employees of these companies are all major stakeholders in the project. These were the main participants that would directly benefit as a result of the project. The people who were living in the area that the pipeline was to be constructed are important stakeholders. Their lives are going to be greatly affected and interrupted by the construction of the pipeline. Thailand and other countries that are going to be buying the natural gas are also stakeholders as are the people living in these countries. The economies of these countries will benefit from the new source of fuel. By deciding to invest in the project, Unocal was confronted with many ethical issues. Unocal was very interested in participating in the project for several reasons, all of which were related to potential future profits and disregarded any harm that might come to the inhabitants of the pipeline area. Also, the majority of oil fields in the U.S. were near depletion so Unocal would have to begin investing...
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...Critical Thinking Student’s Name University Affiliation Critical Thinking Analyze your chosen scenario from a critical thinking perspective. In this assignment, we are going to focus on the Unocal in Burma. Unocal is a company that was established in California in 1890 to help in the development of the oil fields in the country. However, the company highly failed in its obligations since, by 1990s, the oil fields in the United States were performing very poorly almost reaching depletion and the company turned its back and started to invest in other oil firms in the United States. This led it to invest in Burma since it was attracted by the cheap labor, availability of natural gas resources, political stability and also the connection that the region offered to other international markets. They managed to start their business in the area of laying down a pipeline wit the government providing them with security. Their business was however associated with violation of human rights, relocating individuals forcefully, forced labor as well as physical torture of the residents. What is the moral responsibility of all participants? The company first of all given the fact that they had been granted the right to conduct business in the country had the moral obligation to be socially responsible. The state provided them with a platform to do their business and make profits and in return, they should have given back to the society through corporate social responsibility. The...
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...Critical Thinking and Ethics The guidelines and values of thinking critically apply to ethical logic because our instincts may be to do what’s morally right, but we should weigh our decisions before acting. We need to consider if our actions will do more harm than good, perhaps we are acting out of self-interest, or maybe feel a moral obligation despite the consequences. For example, in the early 1990s when Unocal decided to go into Burma to build a gas pipeline. Did they consider that partnering with a military dictatorship that has a history of human rights violations would benefit their people? Or were the stakeholders just focused on the end result despite the cost to achieve it? Unocal compromised moral and business ethics by not widening their perspective beyond generating revenue. If everyone followed a logical path, there would still be a need to principled decision making. Both have a close bond in regards to right and wrong. Logic pertains to the reasoning process of a difficult situation where ethical actions determine the outcome. Rationale helps us critically think about a difficult situation before applying our ethical deeds. For example, Unocal reasoned the benefits of employment, education and medical assistance to the region’s people were the pipeline was being constructed. Giving careful thought to their plans before executing because of the area’s instability. Their moral actions, in this regard, helped approximately 40,000 people in the area. Without ethical...
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...CHAPTER 1 ASSESSING THE ENVIRONMENT POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, LEGAL, TECHNOLOGICAL LECTURE OUTLINE General Outline Opening Profile: India Becoming a Crucial Cog in the Machine at I.B.M. The Global Business Environment Management in Focus: A Small Company, A Global Approach Regional Trading Blocks Comparative Management in Focus: Opening Economy Revitalizes India Information Technology The Globalization of Human Capital The Global Manager’s Role The Political and Economic Environment The Legal Environment The Technological Environment Chapter Discussion Questions Application Exercises Experiential Exercise End-of-Chapter Case Study: Under Pressure, Dubai Company Drops Port Deal Additional Cases: India: The Employment Black Hole? Mecca Cola Student Stimulation Questions and Exercises Opening Profile: India Becoming a Crucial Cog in Machine at I.B.M. The opening profile reports on the growing importance of India as a source of low-cost services in the IT market. The Indian labor market is attractive not only due to its low wages, but also because of the scientific and managerial talent found in the country. IBM’s Indian facility in Bangalore is now the company’s second largest worldwide operation. While IBM has laid off thousands of workers in the United States, its Indian operation has greatly increased employment. Some of IBM’s competitors have also begun to move their operations to India. The opening profile raises the question of the...
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...2009 REPORT TO CONGRESS of the U.S.-CHINA ECONOMIC AND SECURITY REVIEW COMMISSION ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION NOVEMBER 2009 Printed for the use of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.uscc.gov dkrause on GSDDPC29 with K1 VerDate Nov 24 2008 08:23 Nov 10, 2009 Jkt 052771 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6012 Sfmt 6602 M:\USCC\2009\52771.XXX APPS06 PsN: 52771 M:\USCC\USChina.eps Report Documentation Page Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE 3. DATES COVERED 2. REPORT TYPE 01 NOV 2009 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 00-00-2009 to 00-00-2009 ...
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...Multinational Corporations and Foreign Direct Investment This page intentionally left blank Multinational Corporations and Foreign Direct Investment Avoiding Simplicity, Embracing Complexity Stephen D. Cohen 1 2007 1 Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright # 2007 by Oxford University Press Published by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cohen, Stephen D. Multinational corporations and foreign direct investment: avoiding simplicity, embracing complexity / Stephen D. Cohen. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN-13 978-0-19-517935-4; 978-0-19-517936-1 (pbk.) ISBN 0-19-517935-8; 0-19-517936-6 (pbk.) 1. International...
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