Ethical Implications of Google Participation in Military Contracts

Ethical Implications of Google Participation in Military Contracts

Ideals, Effects, and Consequences at Stake

The article by Brittany on the code of ethics of google as a company displays a threat to ethics at work and society, and the consequences may be dire. The Pentagon contract seeks to develop cloud storage for the Defense Department. It is such a lucrative deal that many companies are battling for, but its value for ethics is questionable. The higher percentage of the company’s employees signed a letter in protest of the move to participate in the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) (Lea, 2020). Since the project entails hosting of classified information, Google should distance itself from it because the results of war endanger human lives and the economy. Besides, the involvement of the company in a military deal might hurt it because of a bad image associated with war.

Violation of Moral Rights

The moral rights of employees and the broader market served by the company have been violated. It is the right of the employees to participate in the decision-making process of the company. Besides, ethical standards and morality should be highly valued at any level of administration. While the company expects its employees to operate within the confines of its rules and regulations, there is also need for it to create an ample environment for the employees. The company cannot be certain with the moves of the military department (Lea, 2020). If the project turns out to be a fuel for war and oppression of opponents, the company will have betrayed humanity and its code of conduct.

Utilitarian Recommendation

A Utilitarian would recommend that the company withdraw from participating in the contract. The primary purpose of Utilitarianism is to increase the number of good things in society while scaling down the number of bad things. Building a technology that supports warfare is not a good thing from a utilitarian perspective. Happiness is highly valued in the utilitarianism theory. Humans should be equally happy to achieve morality in society. The intentions of the military department may be right-offering internal defense services. However, it is not enough for such a reputable company to participate in any project that might support warfare.

Kantian Recommendation

However, a Kantian would recommend otherwise. Kantianism has a provision of relativity when analyzing any issue of moral concern. According to them, morality is relative, and they believe in an unconditional principle that people must always adhere to despite what they perceive to be right or wrong. For instance, a Kantian would recommend that Google continues with the project since it is a lucrative deal and a chance for the company to increase its revenues. In this case, a Kantian would not look at the other side of the agreement. He would believe that the company’s growth is the most essential thing without considering the consequences of the company’s actions.

Rationale for Answers

My reasoning for the choice of my answers depends on evidence from the article. I believe that business ethics for the company is at stake because participating in the contract goes against the wish of its employees. Besides, I think the moral rights of employees and society have been violated. The employees had petitioned against the company’s move, but the process still went on. About the Utilitarian and Kantian approach, I chose contrasting recommendations because of the difference in their principles.

Reference

Lea, B. (2020). Google’s code of ethics on military contracts could hinder Pentagon’s work. Retrieved 4 March 2020, from https://www.foxbusiness.com/features/google-code-of-ethics-on-military-contracts-could-hinder-pentagon-work.