Use of off-shore labor

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Use of off-shore labor
Offshoring has become a prevalent feature in the U.S economy nowadays. It basically refers to the shifting of some or part of the production process to other countries while maintaining the sale of products to the United States market. This is majorly caused by market factors which force businesses to look for ways of reducing the cost of production. They result in shifting their production to areas where the protection of workers and living standards are laxer in comparison to the United States. Another incentive to the relocation of the production process outside the U.S is the availability of ineffective tax structures in other countries (Hira and Hira 4-6).
Offshoring has elicited not only political and economic debates but also ethical ones. Economists claim that offshoring cuts on business costs while simultaneously providing cheaper services and products to Americans. Nevertheless, the outsourced jobs are no longer available to U.S citizens and there is the need for creation of new jobs in the economy. According to a study carried out in 2004, about $151 billion in wages and around 3.5 million jobs were to be outsourced by the year 2015. Though the companies end up reducing their production costs, there are ethical concerns in offshoring. Two ethical questions can be raised concerning offshoring, the first is whether it is done ethical and secondly, the role played by ethics in such business decisions (International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life 1)
A company’s main task is the provision of goods and services to its consumers.

In addition to that, it has the moral and social obligation to help the society as a way of giving back for the success derived from the people over the years. A company’s ethics became questionable when it forgets about the people and focuses purely on profits. When a company shifts its manufacturing sector to places such as India and China, the loose of jobs to Americans is clearly visible and the ethical concerns are apparent. Some companies go as far as to commit labor and human rights violations. In 1996, a sportswear manufacturing company known as Nike, that had outsourced its production process to 45 countries, was accused of poor working conditions and child labor. (Hira and Hira 12)
It is highly unethical when corporations fail to provide its employees with high standard working conditions. Many companies have also been accused of failing to adhere to the required quality standards and end up providing poor services to their consumers. It has been noted that in many instances when companies outsource, complaints are raised about a significant reduction in quality. When offshoring the manufacturing sector, companies also knowingly fail to observe the environmental standards and end up causing pollution and degrading the environment. Some companies have also been known to take advantage of other country’s laxity in implementation of the pollution emission regulations. (Ellram 3-4)
Even though outsourcing has been generating both criticism and support, Steps have been taken to address the problem in the U.S. The main focus in these strategies is “reshoring” which refers to bringing the manufacturing sector and jobs back. This is to be achieved by setting a conducive environment for businesses hence discouraging offshoring. One way of discouraging offshoring is the implementation of tax credit policies which will reduce the cost incurred by companies when they re-shore jobs back to the U.S. While the proponents of reshoring see it as a win for the country, critics raise ethical concerns about what will happen to those left behind especially in developing nations once reshoring successfully implemented (Ellram 5).
Works Cited
Ellram, Lisa M. “Offshoring, re-shoring and the manufacturing location decision.” Journal of Supply Chain Management 49.2 (2013): 3-5.
Hira, Ron, and Anil Hira. Outsourcing America: The true cost of shipping jobs overseas and what can be done about it. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn, 2008.
International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life. “The Ethics of Outsourcing Labor.” Ethical Inquiry, Apr. 2013, www.brandeis.edu/ethics/ethicalinquiry/2013/April.html.