Ethics case 1: “Rio Tinto’s Bribes in China”

Ethics case 1: “Rio Tinto’s Bribes in China”
Read the ethics case “Rio Tinto’s Bribes in China” at the end of Chapter 5 of your text and answer the following questions:
1) Bribery cases often involve a company making illegal payments to government officials to land lucrative contracts. So often, legislation is focused on payments made to individuals. Are “facilitating payments” or bribes between companies the same as bribes paid to government officials? Can a company itself be prosecuted for these payments?
2) The culture of giving and receiving payments is ingrained in China. On the other hand, accepting and paying bribes is a violation of Rio Tinto’s code of conduct. When does a payment stop being a gift and turn into a bribe?
3) What is guanxi? How would you advise your company’s personnel to act regarding expectations of guanxi in China?
4) How could moral imagination have been used by Chinese steel company managers to help ensure they received the iron ore needed for production?
Questions Related to Operating Internationally
5) What would you advise that corporations do to recognize the new worldwide reach of anti-bribery enforcement related to the FCPA and the U.K. Bribery Act?
6) Should a North American corporation operating abroad respect each foreign culture encountered or insist that all employees and agents follow only one corporate culture?
7) What should a North American company do in a foreign country where women are regarded as secondary to men and are not allowed to negotiate contracts or undertake senior corporate positions?
8) What five standards or principles would you recommend be implemented by multinational corporations to promote ethical behavior in various global situations?

 

Directions: Answer these questions. Students, use credible sources and no plagiarism! I will check. No blogs, Wikipedia, or Investopedia websites. Use government, scholarly, etc. type sites.
Source: Brooks, L. J., & Dunn, P. (2021). Business & professional ethics for directors, executives, & accountants (9th ed.). Cengage.