Question

In the absence of environmental or safety laws in the locality where it operates, what responsibility does a U.S. corporation have when operating overseas? Does the answer change if the locality does have laws, but they are less strict than ours? What about the ethics of a U.S. corporation selling products overseas that are banned in the United States, such as DDT?

Answer 1

Answer:

1. Moral and ethical responsibility

2. No

3. Lawsuit may be involved

Explanation:

1. Every US company apart from environmental or safety laws in the locality where it operates, have a moral and ethical responsibility to do what is right in terms of safe work practices and product safety/quality.

2. Even though some countries may have less strict laws than the US, moral and ethical responsibility should always thrive. For example, China is known to have less strict manufacturing standards than the United States, however this does not justifies a company to practice unsafe manufacturing standards.

3. For corporations selling products overseas that are banned in the United States, such as DDT to countries that were known to still allow it sales such as India, and North Korea. A lawsuit against those corporations may be considered legal.