Jackson Chao
Andy Xu
Alan Wang
Binardy Tjuatja
Emily Lin
Lee Groff
UNION CARBIDE BHOPAL
• Stakeholders
• Change
• Ethical Issue
• Alternatives
• Recommendation
• Stakeholders
• Change
• Ethical Issue
• Alternatives
• Recommendation
UNION CARBIDE BHOPAL
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
The stakeholders:
• Union Carbide
• The victims of the gas attack (employees)
• The local government
• The members of community
• The CEO of the Union Carbide
• The Greenpeace Group
Before the Disaster :
• The Union Carbide: cut off costs, increase profits
• The victims of the gas attack: safe working conditions, equal pay
• The local government: ensure the safety of employees, prevent environmental damage
• The members of community: ensure the environment is clean
• The CEO of Union Carbide: to increase profits as much as possible
• The Greenpeace Group: to ensure the plant is not polluting the environment
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
After the Disaster :
• Union Carbide: to pay as little compensation as possible and escape all responsibility
• The victims of the gas attack: require fair compensation
• The local government: to ensure the victims get fair compensation and assign responsibilities for cleaning up the pollution caused by the plant
• The members of the community: help clean up the pollution
• The CEO of Union Carbide: escaping responsibility
• The Greenpeace Group: to make sure UCC cleans up the pollution
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Economic Change• The recession of 1970-71 hammered commodities
companies like Union Carbide, with the chemicals and plastics markets entering another cycle of overcapacity.
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Economic Change• From 1967 to 1973, production costs were cut by one-third to avoid the inefficiencies and
plummeting prices that had accompanied industry-wide overcapacity.
Economic Change
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Economic Change
• Steadily rising expenses in Europe resulted in a $32 million loss in 1978.
• That same year, UCC was forced by its creditors to retire $292 million in long-term debt, which forced it to borrow $300 million in 1979.
5 Years later -- 1978 The company found itself increasingly strapped for cash.
Economic Change
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Economic Change
• was proved to be a losing venture and ceased active production in the early 1980s
The Union Carbide factory in BhopalEconomic Change
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Economic Change
• However, vast quantities of dangerous chemicals remained
• Three tanks continued to hold over 60 tons of methyl isocyanate(MIC)
• Cut-backs
The Union Carbide factory in Bhopal
Economic Change
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
• 1950: population 70,000
• 1956: Becomes State Capital
• 1984: population 695,000
ENVIRONMENT Change
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Ethical Issues before the Disaster
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Ethical Issues after the Disaster
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Alternatives Before the Disaster
Alternative #1
• Try to increase the product sales
• Keep all production
Alternative #2
• Cease production and dispose all MIC chemical gas
• Safe for the local residents
• The cost of disposing the gas is large
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Alternatives Before the Disaster
Alternative #3
• Cease production, keep MIC chemical, but continue to perform regular maintenance
• Does not cost too much
• Safe for local residents
Alternatives After the Disaster
Alternative #1
• Doing nothing
• The site continues to poison residents
• Injured people who can’t work and have no family left to take care of them can’t survive
Alternative #2
• Help the doctors treat gas-affected victims
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Alternative #3
• Compensate the victims
• Increasing the compensation to help people survive
• Providing at least 20 years’ worth of medical expenses
Alternative #4
• Properly clean up the site and provide safe drinking water
• New generation will not be poisoned
Alternatives After the Disaster
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
RecommendationBefore the Disaster
Alternative 3 is recommended
Management should elect to cease active production on the plant but continue regular maintenance
Methyl Isocyanate or MIC is a highly reactive and deadly gas that remained in the tanks after production was cut off
Allowing the safety system to fall into disrepair leaves the door open for a potential disaster
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Why?
• There is no market in India for Union Carbide’s pesticides
• Therefore, it follows that the plant should cease operations
• With the safety of Indian citizens at mind, regular maintenance should continue to prevent any disasters
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
RecommendationFollowing the Disaster
• A combination of alternative 3 and alternative 4
• Victims need to be better compensated
• They have endured much suffering and deserve better treatment than they have received to date
• Provide compensation for at least 20 years worth of medical expenses, as oppose to the 5 years originally offered.
• Key Component of new Compensation Settlement: consultation with the victims
• Victims should have a say in compensation levels as they were the ones who have suffered
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Recommendation #2Following the Disaster
• Fully clean up the Union Carbide site
• Chemicals left behind by Union Carbide continue to cause environmental damage and poison a new generation
• Enough suffering has occurred in India and the upcoming generation should not be exposed to the deadly chemicals
• Also, it needs to be made certain that the soil and water near the plant are not contaminated with chemicals
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
Why do we make this recommendation?
• Utilitarian Theory
• Compensating the Bhopal victims with 20+ years worth of medical expenses is the best solution as it provides the greatest amount good for the greatest number of people
• Although an expensive alternative for Union Carbide, compensating victims to the greatest extent possible shows victims there is genuine concern for them
• Deontological Theory
• The action of providing better compensation for the victims is a morally responsible action
Stakeholders Change Ethical Issue Alternatives Recommendation
QUESTIONS?
THE END