| Course | DBA-8010 The Global Business Context Trends, Issues, and Markets |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 7 |
| Paper type | Discussion forum: initial response and two comments |
| Length | About 405 words |
| Format | Discussion post with APA 7 citations |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | Doctor of Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for DBA 8010 Module 7
Module 7 Discussion: What We Owe Workers We Do Not Employ
What We Owe Workers We Do Not Employ: A Supplier's Harvest Wages and a Small Firm's Duty
Our Dutch toll processor buys purple carrots from several growers, including one outside Europe. An audit we commissioned found that during the six-week harvest, the grower paid some seasonal workers by the crate at rates that, for slower workers, fell below the country's legal minimum wage, and that housing for migrant workers was overcrowded. The grower supplies about 15 percent of our purple carrot volume.
The easy answer is to switch growers. But that would leave the workers where they are and might push the grower to sell to buyers who never ask. Donaldson and Dunfee (1994) proposed integrative social contracts theory: communities may set their own ethical norms, within a moral free space, but those norms are legitimate only if they respect hypernorms, principles so fundamental that they apply everywhere. Piece-rate pay is a legitimate local norm; pay below the legal minimum and unsafe housing are not, since they violate basic standards of fair treatment and the host country's own law.
De Kluyver (2012) notes that global firms increasingly carry responsibility for conditions in their supply chains, because customers, investors and regulators hold them accountable for what their suppliers do. Our beverage customer's supplier code requires us to ensure our sources pay at least the legal minimum. Locke et al. (2007) studied a large footwear and apparel firm's supplier audits and found that monitoring alone produced limited improvement in working conditions, and that conditions improved more where the buyer worked with suppliers on underlying causes. That evidence favors remediation over audit and exit.
Our plan: with the toll processor, ask the grower to guarantee the legal minimum as a floor beneath piece rates and to fix housing before the next harvest; share the added cost, about 2 percent on that grower's carrots; and verify with an unannounced visit during harvest. If the grower refuses, we will stop buying and tell the customer why.
Comment on Grace's Post
Grace, your apparel buyer chose to stop ordering from a factory with excessive overtime. Did your firm consider staying and pressing for change, and what would have made that possible?
Comment on Omar's Post
Omar, you argue that a gift to a customs official is a local norm. Integrative social contracts theory would ask whether it violates a hypernorm, such as fair treatment under law. Does it, in your view?
References
De Kluyver, C. A. (2012). Fundamentals of global strategy. Saylor Academy.
Donaldson, T., & Dunfee, T. W. (1994). Toward a unified conception of business ethics: Integrative social contracts theory. Academy of Management Review, 19(2), 252-284. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1994.9410210749
Locke, R., Qin, F., & Brause, A. (2007). Does monitoring improve labor standards? Lessons from Nike. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 61(1), 3-31. https://doi.org/10.1177/001979390706100101
Reading the DBA 8010 Module 7 assignment instructions
The Module 7 forum covers ethical dilemmas in global business. Expect to analyze a dilemma that arises when home and host norms conflict or when a supplier's practices raise ethical questions, apply an ethical framework and research, and recommend what the firm should do. Consider the effects of each option on the people involved, not only on the firm's reputation. Answer two classmates with a question that probes each one's reasoning. Consider what each option would mean for the workers affected, and include a way to verify that any promised change actually happens. Apply a framework that separates local norms from universal ones. Say how you will verify change.
Inside the DBA 8010 Module 7 example
The post opens with an audit finding and its scale. A paragraph rejects the easy answer and applies integrative social contracts theory to separate a local norm from violations. A paragraph uses the textbook on supply chain responsibility and the customer's code. A paragraph sets out a remediation plan with a fallback. The replies ask about staying to press for change and whether a gift violates a hypernorm. Research on supplier monitoring supports remediation over exit, and the plan shares the cost of change with the grower and verifies it with an unannounced visit. The plan sets a fallback: stop buying and explain why to the customer if the grower refuses. Each reply puts a pointed question to the classmate. The cost of remediation is shared with the grower. The post rejects the easy exit first.
Where the marks sit in the DBA 8010 Module 7 rubric
Mentors grade discussions on substantive, research-supported ethical analysis, a reasoned recommendation and replies that advance classmates' thinking. Posts that distinguish acceptable local norms from violations of basic standards show principled reasoning. Considering effects on workers, not only on the firm, demonstrates moral seriousness. A plan with verification and a fallback shows practical ethics. Using evidence on what improves labor conditions, rather than intuition, strengthens the recommendation. Sharing the cost of remediation shows the firm accepting responsibility rather than shifting it. A fallback with a clear trigger shows the plan is serious. Weighing effects on workers shows seriousness. A plan with checks shows integrity.
DBA 8010 Module 7 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students lose points by treating every local practice as either acceptable or unacceptable, by choosing the option that protects reputation without considering workers or by recommending without a plan to verify. Others reply with agreement. Use a framework that separates local norms from basic standards. Weigh effects on people. Plan verification. Ask classmates a pointed question. Plan how you will check that a supplier keeps its promises. Separate acceptable local norms from practices that break basic standards, and act on the second. A free first sample on your own DBA-8010 ethics discussion is available on request. Separate what the firm must do now for the workers from what it should change in its supplier audits.
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DBA 8010 Module 7 questions, answered
Where can I find a free DBA 8010 Module 7 sample paper?
A dilemma about harvest wages at a carrot grower, with two replies, is discussed above.
What is integrative social contracts theory?
Donaldson and Dunfee's view that local communities can write their own ethical rules inside a moral free space, as long as no hypernorm, a principle binding everywhere, is broken.
What is a hypernorm?
A principle so fundamental that it applies across all cultures and communities.
Should a firm drop a supplier that violates labor standards?
Often it is better first to press for remediation, with verification, and to leave only if the supplier refuses.
Why are firms responsible for supplier practices?
Customers, investors and regulators increasingly hold firms accountable for conditions in their supply chains.