Mattel
As stated by the text, the key aspects to utilitarianism are:
1. That ethicality is assessed on the basis of the consequences
2. The decision should produce the greatest amount net pleasure to the widest range of relevant stakeholders making society as a whole better off. The pleasure is often measured in terms of increasing happiness and/or reducing pain, where happiness and pain can be either physical or psychological.
In Mattel case, there were many negative consequences resulting in the contaminated malfunction toys. For example, the excess lead paint over permissible levels in the toys can cause permanent brain damage and even death. The improper toys’ designs failed to prevent the magnets from falling out which can be swallowed by children. When more than one magnet is swallowed, the magnets can attract to each other and cause intestinal perforation (or it will develop holes on the oesophagus, stomach, and bladder).
Although, Mattel made it clear that it demands that the toys that are outsourced to other manufacturers must comply with the safety standards established by Mattel. Not only that, raw materials that would be used by an outsourced manufacturer should first be sent to Mattel control facility in order to verify they meet all safety standards.
However, Mattel has been manufacturing in China since 1959 and has developed a long standing relationship with the Chinese manufacturers which may have led to more relaxed monitoring and control of its operations.
Mattel had allowed the local suppliers to implement their own safety testing which resulted in the shipping of tainted toys from the factories in China to children around the world. The suppliers had started to use cheaper paint which contained lead to reduce manufacturing cost. However, Mattel’s top level managers appeared to be fixated only on the low price of production of the Chinese suppliers. By allowing the quality standards to drop to potentially dangerous levels, Mattel managers
1. That ethicality is assessed on the basis of the consequences
2. The decision should produce the greatest amount net pleasure to the widest range of relevant stakeholders making society as a whole better off. The pleasure is often measured in terms of increasing happiness and/or reducing pain, where happiness and pain can be either physical or psychological.
In Mattel case, there were many negative consequences resulting in the contaminated malfunction toys. For example, the excess lead paint over permissible levels in the toys can cause permanent brain damage and even death. The improper toys’ designs failed to prevent the magnets from falling out which can be swallowed by children. When more than one magnet is swallowed, the magnets can attract to each other and cause intestinal perforation (or it will develop holes on the oesophagus, stomach, and bladder).
Although, Mattel made it clear that it demands that the toys that are outsourced to other manufacturers must comply with the safety standards established by Mattel. Not only that, raw materials that would be used by an outsourced manufacturer should first be sent to Mattel control facility in order to verify they meet all safety standards.
However, Mattel has been manufacturing in China since 1959 and has developed a long standing relationship with the Chinese manufacturers which may have led to more relaxed monitoring and control of its operations.
Mattel had allowed the local suppliers to implement their own safety testing which resulted in the shipping of tainted toys from the factories in China to children around the world. The suppliers had started to use cheaper paint which contained lead to reduce manufacturing cost. However, Mattel’s top level managers appeared to be fixated only on the low price of production of the Chinese suppliers. By allowing the quality standards to drop to potentially dangerous levels, Mattel managers