module 1 case study
Natural Disaster and the Retail Business Owner
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the news has been full of examples like this one from Hurricane Katrina:
During Hurricane Katrina, there were several cases of retail businesses increasing their prices. Gasoline prices went up, food prices increased as food became scarcer, and the prices of generators also became virtually unaffordable for many. As it became more evident that Hurricane Katrina was going to impact the New Orleans area, many people decided to evacuate the area and move north to Arkansas, Northern Mississippi, and Tennessee to wait out the storm. As vacant motel rooms became fewer and fewer, Brian Johnson, who owned a motel on Interstate 55 near McComb, Mississippi called up his day manager, Lilly and said “We know there are going to be a lot of people coming up to stay out of the direct path of the Hurricane. I want you to change our rate from $55 to $200 a night.” Lilly was aghast. She responded “We can’t do that Mr. Johnson, these people need help.” “Lilly, this is our opportunity to make some money from a bad situation. I really need you to do this.” Lilly was silent for a few moments then responded “Mr. Johnson, if you insist on increasing these rates, I will quit.” Taken by surprise, Brian stated “Well Lilly, I guess you have to do what you have to do but I’m going to raise these rates.” Lilly angrily told Brian she quit and hung up the phone. Brian did increase his prices for the motel over the next week, but only to $125 vice the $200 he initially wanted to. Approximately 3 months after Hurricane Katrina decimated the New Orleans area, Lilly reapplied for her job at the motel Brian owned. Brian was still resentful about what Lilly had done, but he had also tried to see it from her point-of-view. He was not sure what to do. Brian asks you what you think.
Should Brian give Lilly her job back?
Case Expectations:
Read the background material for this module. Apply that material to the decision making that Lilly made and the decision making that Brian made. Which approach are you applying in deciding what to recommend to Brian?
Write a 2-3 page paper, not including cover page and reference page, explaining your analysis and advice to Brian. Be sure to demonstrate that you understand the normative ethics issues and the utilitarian and deontological approaches.
General Expectations:
Your paper should be double-spaced with 12-point font.
Your paper should have a separate cover page and a separate reference page containing the full citations corresponding to the in-text citations you choose to use in the body of your paper. So in addition to the 2-3 page body of your paper you will have a title page and a reference page. So overall, you will be submitting a 4 to 5 page document.
Be sure to cite references and proofread your paper.
Upload your paper to Coursenet by the end of the module.
Rev. January 7, 2014
module 1 SLP
Rather, the session long project for this class is your chance to take something from the real world and develop a cumulative approach to the analysis of an ethical issue.
There are two parts to this module 1 session long project which is a little bit of a practice run for the remaining cumulative SLP project:
I
It is best to select the company you work for as your real world situation to study. If you do not wish to do that, then please select a company you know something about.
You will be thinking about how your company handles different moral problems.
Please write a little bit about the company you will be working on
II
After you have selected a company to look at, identify a moral problem, something the company is working to correct. Every company has some kind of moral problem. Whether they face up to it or not is another matter. But they have problems. Find a simple one. It could be something as small as refusing to listen to minor safety claims, listening in on personal phone calls, strict dress codes, and the like. That might not seem like much, but it can be very important to the people concerned.
SLP Expectations:
Find a small problem and tell me what the utilitarian considerations are, and what rights (deontological considerations) are involved. This is more of practice to get set up. I want to know about the company you select and some small moral problem.
Please write one or two pages and upload it to Coursenet by the end of this module.
General Expectations
Your paper should be double-spaced with 12-point font.
Your paper should have a separate cover page and if you are using any in-text citations then a separate reference page.
Be sure to proofread your paper.
Upload your paper to Coursenet by the end of the module.
Rev. January 7, 2014
