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Business ethics are a form of applied ethics that examine ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. Applied ethics are a field of. ethics that deal with ethical questions in many fields such as medical, technical, legal and business ethics. Business Ethics are the application of Ethical values to the business world. They apply to any and all aspects of business conduct. Business ethics are relevant to the conduct of individuals and also relevant to the conduct of the business organizations as a whole. In the increasingly conscience-focused marketplaces of the 21st century, the demand for more ethical business processes and actions(known as ethicism)is increasing. Simultaneously, pressure is applied on industry to improve business ethics through new public initiatives and laws(e. g, higher UK road tax for higher-emission vehicles). Businesses can often attain short-term gains by acting in an unethical fashion; however, such antics tend to undermine the economy over time.
Business ethics can be both a normative and a descriptive discipline. As a corporate practice and a career specialization, the field is primarily normative. In academia descriptive approaches are also taken. The range and quantity of business ethical issues reflect the degree to which business is perceived to be at odds with non-economic social values. Historically, interest in business ethics accelerated dramatically during the 1980s and 1990s, both within major corporations and within academia. For example, today most major corporate websites lay emphasis on commitment to promoting non-economic social values under a variety of headings(e.g, ethics codes, social responsibility charters). In some cases, corporations have redefined their core values in the light of business ethical considerations(e.g. BP's "beyond petroleum" environmental tilt).