Wall Street
Transcript: BlueStar would also have to take actions to ensure this didn't happen again and might now be under strict monitoring by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Three Types of Cost: If a high ranking officer of a company is caught insider trading the consequences and costs to the company can be very stiff. There was more than likely an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission that was costly for BlueStar Airlines. How to deal with the dilemma? If your company has installed a universal set of rules that apply to ethically unsound actions, like insider trading, than they should never happen. If Bud Fox had stuck to his morals the entire movie the series of events that proved to be so costly would have never happened. The stock of BlueStar Airlines wouldn't have changed as violently as it did, the Securities and Exchange Commission would never have gotten involved, and the union workers would not have been pushed to a point where they distrust the company. There are different codes that determine what is ethical and unethical that are determined by local customs and norms. These change from country to country and can even change from once area to another in one country. If ethical universalism were to be applied to insider trading then it would be very easily done away with entirely, assuming that everyone within the company follows the rule. Insider trading would be seen as a form of either lying to or deceiving the public, both of which would fall on the side of what is wrong when dealing with a UNIVERSAL set of rules. Dilemma JUST DON'T DO IT DUMMY!!! Even though it doesn't appear that Bud Fox and his level of insider trading will have the same result as Enron's fudging their accounting records, this is the prime example of what can happen to a company when it has lost all of its credibility. No employees want to work for Enron, and no customer can trust the company name enough to really want to do business with them. Level 2: The reputations of Bud Fox, Gordon Gekko, and BlueStar Airlines will all take a hit once this news has gone public. There surely was some class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of the union workers who were harmed in the breaking up of the company. What can go wrong? Ethical Universalism and let's not forget... Integrative Social Contracts Theory Don't let this be you! Level 3: While this theory combines the previous two there is still some room for interpretation if someone wants to push what is accepted. Lying and deceiving might seem to be considered universally bad, but it might not be that hard to convince someone that helping out a business partner is normal Ethical Relativism For Bud Fox and Gordon Gekko there was jail time and significant losses of income. There is a code of ethics that a company decides to adhere to that are based on a set of UNIVERSAL rules of what is right and what is wrong. What strategy would work best? When Bud and Gordon were controlling the stock price of the company all of the smaller stockholders were at their mercey, losing lots of money when it dropped incredibly low. buying or selling of corporate stock by someone in the corporation that is done so based on "inside" information not known by the public. Union employees will have lost trust in the compnay. After the insider trading was discovered BlueStar Airlines would have had to take some actions to fix what had already been made wrong by Bud Fox. Double click anywhere & add an idea Ethical Universalism Applying ethical relativism should end in the same result as ethical universalism since insider trading is still illegal. However, many people can very easily twist what is acceptable in their heads to make things work in their favor. Insider trading will never be accepted in New York City, but that didn't stop Bud Fox. Insider trading is illegal. Bud Fox eventually in charge of BlueStar Airlines but he continued to use inside information to make money by trading stocks. Enron: There are some ethical codes that are UNIVERSAL,, but in some circumstances the local norms or customs may cause some less universal ethical standards to change from one place in the world to another. Bud Fox knows how a court case will end concerning BlueStar Airlines that is beneficial to their future. With this information he tells Gordon Gekko to buy stock now before the general public hears of the court's ruling. Some Other Examples of Scandals: Insider Trading: Level 1: If the company reputation takes a big enough hit it could even begin harder to recruit talented workers to work for BlueStar Airways, and customers might begin to refuse to fly on the Airline any longer. This is the biggest cost a company can incur.