BUSINESS STUDIES PROJECT TERM 2 MEGAN VAN DEN BERG
ETHICAL BUSINESS PRACTICES
• Ethical responsibility is about looking after the well-being of the employees by ensuring fair labour
practices and to make sure there will be no gender, race or religious discrimination among the
employees and each employee will be given equal pay for equal work. Despite equal pay for equal work,
the concept of a living wage differs among people, therefore employers need to take that into account
and find ways to better compensate different groups or classes of employees. Ethical responsibility is
about doing the right thing instead of what the law requires.
EXAMPLE OF EITHICAL BUSINESS PRACTICES
If a business moves an employees base of operations which will have direct financial implications for the
employee then they might not be under legal obligation to compensate the employee for example,
moving an employees position from Hillcrest to Durban however it would be ethically right to
compensate the employee for the additional expenses like petrol and parking incurred
PHILANTHROPIC RESPONSIBILITY
• Philanthropic responsibility is more than giving of money it’s the method or idea of teaching someone
to fish instead of giving them a fish to eat, that can be achieved by donating time and or money to very
specific organisations that would promote this idea. It is therefore to better the communities or society
and the human race in general and not just those in your immediate surroundings
EXAMPLE OF PHILANTHROPIC RESPONSIBILITY
• Incentives started as an idea to raise awareness of the homeless and the idea was to get specifically
CEOs involved. Because they are involved this would also get their respective companies and the public
involved due to their high public profile.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY:
• The planet is slowly dying, therefore, limiting pollution and reducing greenhouse gases is essential.
Companies need to recycle and reduce their waste by reusing and/or finding alternative uses for
disposable products as well as incorporate renewable energy sources into their companies. Correct
management and restoration of mining sites, forests and agricultural holdings is also extremely
important as this can significantly add to environmental damage.
EXAMPLE ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
• mpact is a local company that specialises in recycling and they are running various projects throughout
the country. One of them is a competition for Gauteng schools. This competition involves Recycling with
the school achieving the highest level of recycling winning a cash prize. The idea behind this project is to
educate school kids to be more sensitive towards the environment and to become responsible citizens
and in return teach this to their own children one day.
, ECONOMIC RESPONSIBILITY:
• A lot of people don’t understand that the most important aspect of a business is to make money, but it
needs to do this in a sustainable manner by a striking balance between ethical, environmental and
philanthropic practices. If a business does not make money it will not survive, which will lead to the
business downfall and job loses. Sustainable businesses are needed that would survive for a number of
years or even generations to come, but this can only be achieved if it abides by a set of ethical principles
and moral regulations. In this context, companies need to find solutions that are ethical so that
customers will support them.
EXAMPLE OF ECONOMIC RESPOSIBILITY
They have engaged in a number of charities and community work. I will be discussing one of their
initiatives in detail. Standard bank is a good example of a company that incorporates these concepts. For
example, they have partnered with Microsoft windows to go paperless. They have made the decision
not to invest money in coal mining. And lastly, they have incorporated an extensive social responsibility
program that involves their staff, for example, employees in Rosebank revamped a library at Roseneath
Primary school.
KWIKSPAR HILLCREST
•They source their produce locally this is better for the environment as there will be less pollution from
cars emitted into the air as they won't have to travel as far to source their food. •On their Facebook
page, they have a number of videos educating customers on the different types of plastics and which
ones should be reused and recycled
•They have a recycling project, which encourages the community to make Eco bricks using plastics that
cannot be recycled for example sweet and chip wrappers as well as they ask their customers to bring
back hard and soft plastics which will be weighed at the till and then you will receive a credit. This
prevents plastics from going into landfills as well as river streams.
•They invested in 100% biodegradable bags and utensils these degrade within 6-9 months, which is
made from corn starch, The utensil consists of green knives, forks and containers which is also handed
out to customers who purchase takeaways.
•They correctly disperse their oil by recycling it which is collected by companies which specialise in
converting the oil. They do this by using the oil for additives in firelighters and lighters as well as
biodiesel.
Citizens
• South African citizens can find charities and environmental groups to join and be involved in the
community.
• To ensure their prolonged participation in these projects as they need to drill down to the specifics in
detail. To merely say let's clean the environment as opposed to clean the railway line every Tuesday
between 2 and 4. In other words, people would have the opportunity to choose when, where and what
activities they want to get involved in.
ETHICAL BUSINESS PRACTICES
• Ethical responsibility is about looking after the well-being of the employees by ensuring fair labour
practices and to make sure there will be no gender, race or religious discrimination among the
employees and each employee will be given equal pay for equal work. Despite equal pay for equal work,
the concept of a living wage differs among people, therefore employers need to take that into account
and find ways to better compensate different groups or classes of employees. Ethical responsibility is
about doing the right thing instead of what the law requires.
EXAMPLE OF EITHICAL BUSINESS PRACTICES
If a business moves an employees base of operations which will have direct financial implications for the
employee then they might not be under legal obligation to compensate the employee for example,
moving an employees position from Hillcrest to Durban however it would be ethically right to
compensate the employee for the additional expenses like petrol and parking incurred
PHILANTHROPIC RESPONSIBILITY
• Philanthropic responsibility is more than giving of money it’s the method or idea of teaching someone
to fish instead of giving them a fish to eat, that can be achieved by donating time and or money to very
specific organisations that would promote this idea. It is therefore to better the communities or society
and the human race in general and not just those in your immediate surroundings
EXAMPLE OF PHILANTHROPIC RESPONSIBILITY
• Incentives started as an idea to raise awareness of the homeless and the idea was to get specifically
CEOs involved. Because they are involved this would also get their respective companies and the public
involved due to their high public profile.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY:
• The planet is slowly dying, therefore, limiting pollution and reducing greenhouse gases is essential.
Companies need to recycle and reduce their waste by reusing and/or finding alternative uses for
disposable products as well as incorporate renewable energy sources into their companies. Correct
management and restoration of mining sites, forests and agricultural holdings is also extremely
important as this can significantly add to environmental damage.
EXAMPLE ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
• mpact is a local company that specialises in recycling and they are running various projects throughout
the country. One of them is a competition for Gauteng schools. This competition involves Recycling with
the school achieving the highest level of recycling winning a cash prize. The idea behind this project is to
educate school kids to be more sensitive towards the environment and to become responsible citizens
and in return teach this to their own children one day.
, ECONOMIC RESPONSIBILITY:
• A lot of people don’t understand that the most important aspect of a business is to make money, but it
needs to do this in a sustainable manner by a striking balance between ethical, environmental and
philanthropic practices. If a business does not make money it will not survive, which will lead to the
business downfall and job loses. Sustainable businesses are needed that would survive for a number of
years or even generations to come, but this can only be achieved if it abides by a set of ethical principles
and moral regulations. In this context, companies need to find solutions that are ethical so that
customers will support them.
EXAMPLE OF ECONOMIC RESPOSIBILITY
They have engaged in a number of charities and community work. I will be discussing one of their
initiatives in detail. Standard bank is a good example of a company that incorporates these concepts. For
example, they have partnered with Microsoft windows to go paperless. They have made the decision
not to invest money in coal mining. And lastly, they have incorporated an extensive social responsibility
program that involves their staff, for example, employees in Rosebank revamped a library at Roseneath
Primary school.
KWIKSPAR HILLCREST
•They source their produce locally this is better for the environment as there will be less pollution from
cars emitted into the air as they won't have to travel as far to source their food. •On their Facebook
page, they have a number of videos educating customers on the different types of plastics and which
ones should be reused and recycled
•They have a recycling project, which encourages the community to make Eco bricks using plastics that
cannot be recycled for example sweet and chip wrappers as well as they ask their customers to bring
back hard and soft plastics which will be weighed at the till and then you will receive a credit. This
prevents plastics from going into landfills as well as river streams.
•They invested in 100% biodegradable bags and utensils these degrade within 6-9 months, which is
made from corn starch, The utensil consists of green knives, forks and containers which is also handed
out to customers who purchase takeaways.
•They correctly disperse their oil by recycling it which is collected by companies which specialise in
converting the oil. They do this by using the oil for additives in firelighters and lighters as well as
biodiesel.
Citizens
• South African citizens can find charities and environmental groups to join and be involved in the
community.
• To ensure their prolonged participation in these projects as they need to drill down to the specifics in
detail. To merely say let's clean the environment as opposed to clean the railway line every Tuesday
between 2 and 4. In other words, people would have the opportunity to choose when, where and what
activities they want to get involved in.
