Deliverables

One short answer assignment of 1200 words in total (maximum), excluding any references.

Ensure you answer all questions. Referencing

Ensure you reference all sources you use in your assignment, including online sources. Direct quotes (i.e. statements not in your own words) should be included in quote marks in addition to being referenced. You should use the APA 7th referencing system, since this is the same system you will need to use for your essays.

The Library has set up an institutional account for APA’s ‘Academic Writer’, which includes tools for using this system. There are also numerous web resources on APA referencing, and popular referencing software (e.g. Endnote – free to students) can be set up to automatically insert your references in the correct style.

Extensions and Penalties

There will be a deduction of 10% of the total awarded mark for each 24-hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for example, 25 hours late in submission: 20% penalty).

This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved. Note that there are limits on how long after the due date students can apply for special consideration, so please submit any applications as soon as possible. BESS can assist with inquiries about the special consideration process.

Marking

The value of marks per question is provided on the assignment sheet. Marks will be awarded for each question according to how accurately, completely and clearly you answer each question.

Questions

1. In the COVID19 Pandemic, Australian state governments imposed minimum legal requirements for businesses to manage the health risks of COVID19 to their employees and customers, such as social distancing in store and sometimes mandatory use of masks.

Explain why business might have ethical obligations in managing COVID19 safely that go beyond these legal requirements. Your answer should explain two differences between ethics and the law, and give an example of how each difference might apply in this case. [2 marks]

2. In 2021, two beach volleyball stars decided to boycott a tournament held in Qatar over a requirement that women competitors wear long shirts and pants while competing ‘out of respect for the culture and traditions of the host country’. Read the following article on this case and then answer the questions below:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/feb/22/qatar-beach-volleyball-bikini-ban-karla- borger-boycott

         1

Consider how a relativist and universalist would assess whether it is ethical for the organisers of this tournament to impose dress standards on competitors. Your answer should:

2A. Explain the main differences between relativist and universalist approaches to ethics [1 mark]; and

2B. Illustrate these differences in how a universalist and relativist would analyse the ethical issue in this case. [1 mark]

3. In 2021, Facebook temporarily blocked users from accessing Australian news sites via their site, in protest against Australian government legislation to compel Facebook to pay news organisations for the articles that Facebook users distribute. Read the following article on this case and then answer the questions below:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-18/facebook-to-restrict-sharing-or-viewing-news-in- australia/13166208

3A. Explain what makes an action ethical according to utilitarians and at least one argument for this view. [2 marks]

3B. Outline at least two benefits and two harms in this case that a utilitarian would consider in their analysis of Facebook’s actions. [2 marks]

3C. In light of your answer in 5B, explain how a utilitarian would assess the ethics of Facebook’s actions in this case overall? [1 mark]

4. As the COVID19 vaccine becomes more widely available, experts have discussed whether employers should be able to compel workers to accept a vaccine. Read the following article to answer the questions below [Note: Remember ethics is not just about what is legally allowed or required]

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/bosses-have-the-power-to-force-employees-to-take- the-vaccine-experts-20210101-p56r64.html

4A. According to Kant, what determines whether an action is right or wrong? [1 mark] 4B. Outline at least two rights or duties that employers may have in this case, and at least

two rights or duties workers in this case might have. [2 marks]

4C. Briefly explain Kant’s ‘categorical imperative’. Choose one right or duty in your answer to question 4B, and explain how this would either meet or not meet the requirements of Kant’s categorical imperative. [2 marks]

5. Read the article below on the continued rise in CEO pay in the banking sector after the Royal Commission into Misconduct in Banking and Financial Services, and then answer the following questions:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/sep/17/australian-ceo-bonuses-at-near- record-highs-despite-royal-commission

5A. How does a virtue ethicist decide whether an action is ethical or unethical? [1 mark]

5B. How would a virtue ethics approach to whether CEOs are paid too much be different from the utilitarian approach Moriarty discusses in Week 2? [2 Marks]

5C. Provide your own analysis of whether CEOs are paid too much from a virtue ethics standpoint. Your answer should consider at least 2 virtues, and 2 vices, that might be relevant, and explain why a virtue ethicist would think these are important [3 marks]