CHAPTER 10 ETHICAL PROBLEMS OF ORGANIZATIONS 375 COMPANY: MCWANE, INC. INDUSTRY:
ID: 371521 • Letter: C
Question
CHAPTER 10 ETHICAL PROBLEMS OF ORGANIZATIONS 375 COMPANY: MCWANE, INC. INDUSTRY: MANUFACTURER OF WATER AND SEWER PIPES SITUATION McWane, Inc., in Birmingham, Alabama, is a privately held pipe manufacturer that has expanded aggressively over the last 30 years-mainly by purchasing antiquated plants and increasing profitability through what the company calls "disciplined management practices." Although the industry-melting metal and casting pipe-is inherently dangerous, McWane's drive for profits was so relentless that worker safety was sacrificed in the name of profits for the Mc Wande family, who own the company and answer to no shareholders. For a number of vears after 1995, Mc Wane accumulated four times more safety violations than its six major competitors combined! From 1995 to 2002, nine McWane workers were killed on the job and more than 4,600 workers were injured (out of a total of 5,000), many in particularly gruesome, maiming Tyler Pipe Company in Tyler,Texas-McWane reduced the workforce by almost two-thirds and demanded increased productivity from the remaining workforce. An inspector from OSHA, the federal regulator charged with guarding worker safety, described what was found at Tyler Pipe: "Many workers have scars or disfigurations which are noticeable from several feet away. Burns and ampu- tations are frequent. Throughout the plant, in supervisors' offices and on bulletin boards, next to production charts and union memos, is posted in big orange letters: "REDUCE MAN HOURS PER TON."2 accidents. At one acquisition- HOW THE COMPANY HANDLED IT After the New York Times and Frontline (a production of PBS) investigated and produceda shocking series-in the newspaperandon PBS stations-that exposed the horrific conditions at McWane, the company responded with a writtern statement denying allegations about its safety record. "We do not put production concems ahead of safety and environmental compliance," said company officials in a written statement to the New York Time and Frontline. That publicity prompted eries offederal investigations, which led to myriad indictments in several states (including Alabama, New York, New Jersey, Texas, and Utah).Among them wasa unt indictment charging the company with illegal dumping and other 25-cou environmental crimes; other counts charged the company with conspiring workplace safety and environmental laws and obstructing government ns by lying, intimidating workers, and altering accident sites. RESULTS operation in Texas and was fined $4.5 million. In June 2005, ound guilty of 20 environmental crimes at one of its factories in cWane pleaded guilty to environmental crimes committed at its Tyler Pipe Me McW August 2005, the company pleaded guilty to federal safety and
Explanation / Answer
Extreme level of carelessness as well as implication of the ethical standards for the society is used. This company has crossed all the limits. For the worker rights. it has shown the bad side of the societies which directly deals in melting iron as well as different aspect of the manufacturing products. Extremely bad working environment for the employees and management with does not even listen to the Employees is present in to the culture of this specific company.
No more value services provided by these employees to the company but they only look into the profits generated by these employees towards the company. Safety of the employees was extremely reduced or or we can say it was not present in the organisation structure of Mcwane Inc.
Out of 5000 workers were injured in gruesome accidents inside the manufacturing facilities of the company, level of safety was not increased which directly degrees is the overall Ethics of the company towards the work labour and would have been corrected at instant. This is specific situation directly shows as the implication of the authoritarian structure of the organisation which directly rules over the employees and acts as a dictator. By having this kind of dictatorship into the organisation the level of ethics and morals is reduced to a narrow line. This A reduction directly reduces the overall effect and safety of the organisation as most of the things are directly focusing on the profit but not the safety of the workers.
Safety guidelines work violated and culture of the organisation was kept in terror so that no worker could go to the legislation and file a case against the company. Unethical practices and non reporting of accidents is a common term in this company. Ethical implications of the specific situation has created extremely large complications inside the organisation by the reduced safety factors and by not value in the life of the workers. Workers have been exposed to different kind of risks inside the organisation which would have been reduced by the company to maintain ethical and moral balance between different task.
The specific situations would have been opposed by the labour as it is directly impacting the labour over different aspects and could have been avoided.