In Chapter 5 we discuss at what point does a corporation take responsibility. Is it ethical for companies to deceive in advertising for a profit? Should a company be concerned with the environment? Should there be legislation dealing with the environment? Recently the legislature was discussing soap beads because they do not dissolve and have been found in fish. With corporate responsibility, for instance, obesity in the U.S. is a growing problem, and costs many stakeholders more and more. Obesity in the workforce leads to expensive health care, interruptions in productivity, and days absent from work. In the U.S., 34.4% of adults are overweight or obese. In 2004, The US Health and Human Services Department declared obesity a disease affecting the population. With this in mind, should the government be able to regulate fast-food restaurants? A downward trend in the cost of calories, combined with a downward trend in physical exertion at work, has also contributed significantly to the rise in obesity. 84% of parents take their families to a fast-food restaurant weekly. The FDA has initiated the count calories program. But at what point does this issue become the responsibility of the consumers, the restaurants, or the governments?

Weiss, J. W. (2014). Business ethics: A stakeholder and issues management approach. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.