I find ethics to be quite a tricky thing. We can argue them all day long but it will inevitably lead us to a conversation on morals, and that seems to be something none of us can agree on. [The whole "what's right for you is right for you" argument is terribly weak yet continues to prevail. It's a bit of a monotonous cycle.] That being said, I am sure that there are some ethics that the "good people" can agree on. For instance, the whole Disny scandal. Many people still hold a grudge about Disney's subliminal sexual animated antics. While I do agree that Disney should be responsible for all of the content in their movies [honestly, the production time takes years and the animators should be held to a code after all their work is for the viewing of impressionable young children], they cannot be expected to take all of the blame for the small things. Accidents happen, and the screeners are human [i.e. not perfect]. Problems like these beg the question: Exactly how aware and responsible should a company be?
For starters, ethics must begin with the consumer. In a capitalistic society, they only make what you will buy. So if we insist on cheap clothes, then it is more than likely going to come at the cost of child labour SOMEWHERE. If overt sexuality is a right and a part of "adult" pop-culture, then how can we expect that they won't produce something containing "offensive" material. It might be for kids and families, but kids and families aren't the ones making the films, shows, and merchandise. So it's nice to see people taking a stand for what they believe in. For instance, a friend of mine from University is trying to get the student population to come together and force the campus bookstore to be a sweat-free shop [no paraphernalia made in sweatshops or child labour shops]. He's started a group and calling the students to come together and actually stand for something instead of just whining about it now and then.
As much as I applaud the consumer for stepping up, I do think companies need to come forward. Know what your company stands for and just do it, don't flaunt it. Ethics should never be a selling point. They should be a standard. Continue to treat something as special and prized and it will remain so. Make employees sign contracts with ethics and responsibility clauses. My high school made every student sign a behavioral contract when they joined the school stating that all of our behavior reflected on the intsitution regardless of when or where it was committed and that we would abide by school rules and expectations at all time. This isn't to say that no one will slip up, but when people continue to make deliberate offenses they can be held responsible.
One company I find to be stand-up is Lush. Originally its founder worked for The Body Shop but found that the company just wasn't doing enough to stand by itsethics. So Lush products are NEVER tested on animals, they are made fresh and mostly vegan/vegetarian, and each product has a sticker with the expiration date and the name and the face of the employee who made it. They also take part in a number of charitable things... but these events are never part of ad campaigns. Ethics isn't something they do, it is what they are. I plan to only work in an environment like that of Lush. If I don't agree with the ethics, or the company standard, then I won't work there. Should I decide to start my own business, ethics won't just be some charity we support. It will come right down to the quality and the content of our work and even the clients we choose to work with.
