Is+increasing+profits+the+only+social+responsibility+of+business?

Is increasing profits the only social responsibility of business?

Taking Sides selections Issue 3. Is Increasing Profi ts the Only Social Responsibility of Business? 54 YES: Milton Friedman, from “The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Its Profi ts,” The New York Times Magazine, September 13, 1970. 56 Contents CONTENTS ix NO: Joe DesJardins, “Business and Environmental Sustainability,” Business and Professional Ethics Vol. 24, nos 1 & 2. 62 Friedman argues that businesses have neither the right nor the ability to fool around with “social responsibility” as distinct from profi t-making. They serve employees and customers best when they do their work with maximum effi ciency. The only restrictions on the pursuit of profi t that Friedman accepts are the requirements of law and “the rules of the game” (“open and free competition without deception or fraud”). DesJardins explains that in the early years of the 21st century, we face a set of serious economic, ecological, and ethical challenges that require businesses to accept social responsibilities that support their own environmental sustainability and help meet the real needs of billions of people around the globe. He suggests various ways in which businesses might go about this without sacrifi cing profi tability.

Issue 1. Are Profits the Only Business of Business? 2 YES: Milton Friedman, from “The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Its Profits,” The New York Times Magazine (September 13, 1970) 4 NO: Robert Almeder, from “Morality in the Marketplace: Reflections on the Friedman Doctrine,” in Milton Snoeyenbos, Robert Almeder, and James Humber, eds., Business Ethics, rev. ed. (Prometheus Press, 1998) 10 Free-market economist and Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman contends that the sole responsibility of business is to increase its profits. Philosopher Robert Almeder maintains that if capitalism is to survive,