A Dangerous Company Analysis
Frontline: A Dangerous Company Reaction The Frontline Documentary A Dangerous Company details the extreme negligence of McWane Incorporated in regards to work place safety and environmental violations. McWane Incorporated is one of the largest manufacturers of iron pipes in North America, and has over twenty foundries in the United States alone. The documentary investigated some of the worst offending foundries of the company, including the Tyler, Texas foundry, and a factory in Birmingham, Alabama. The investigation relied heavily on first hand interviews with both former and current employees of the factories, as well as extensive files collected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency. The documentary, along with an article by The New York Times, is credited with bringing the violations to the attention of the Justice department. The involvement of the Justice Department has led to criminal prosecutions that have helped to reform the company’s notorious “McWane Way” philosophy of sacrificing safety and environmental concerns for production. I found the documentary incredible …show more content…
It is surreal that after all the laws and reforms put into place in the last fifty years, that a company was able to operate like it existed during the beginning of the industrial revolution. It is especially hard to comprehend how a company so large was able to succeed for so long with its lawless attitude, and blatant disregard for workers safety and its environmental responsibility. Had the company been one factory operating a smaller operation I could understand how this could happen, but with revenues of two billion, it is unfathomable. Hopefully this film will serve as a cautionary tale about the importance of common sense regulations, and the dangers of allowing companies to operate with only profit as a
Civil Action J Shlichtman Case
335 Words | 2 PagesIn the movie, A Civil Action, personal injury lawyer, Jan Schlichtman and his law firm, file a law suit against Beatrice Foods and W.R. Grace & Company. The prosecution’s case is based on the premise that these two leather companies contaminated the water supply, in Woburn, Massachusetts. The motion brought before the court requested that the eight plaintiffs be compensated for “negligence, conscious pain and suffering, and wrongful death. ”1 Schlichtman presented medical evidence that illustrated an unusually high incidence of cancer in the small town of Woburn.
A Brief Summary Of A Civil Action
396 Words | 2 PagesIn the movie, A Civil Action, the plaintiff’s case began when a group of various parents and families believed that the health related issues and deaths in their city of Woburn was the result of contaminated water. Although the attorney, Jan Schlichtmann, was reluctant to take the case at first because they didn’t have plausible cause, he realized that 2 corporations sat at the border of the river. Mr. Schlichtmann and his firm thus took the case and file a major lawsuit which stated that the the two corporations, Grace and Beatrice, caused wrongful deaths due to the dumping of hazardous waste. The plaintiff side of this case then begins to collect scientific evidence and witness statements in order to prove that both Grace and Beatrice were
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Workers During The Progressive Movement
1270 Words | 6 PagesThis major development was the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that caused 148 workers in the fire die. This foul “accident” as the owners of the shirtwaist factory, Issac Harris and Max Blanck, would call it but this act was no accident due to the terrible working condition these people had to go through. Metaphorically and literally Harris and Blanck locked the door and threw away the key of the lives of these innocent sweatshop workers when they locked the door that morning for “better
Frances Perkins Shirtwaist Factory Fire
532 Words | 3 PagesFrances Perkins, a survivor from the Shirtwaist Factory Fire quotes “Moved by this sense of stricken guilt, we banded ourselves together to find a way by law to prevent this kind of disaster.” Frances Perkins became secretary of Labor under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and this quote said by Perkins “something must be done. We’ve got to turn this into some kind of victory, some kind of constructive action,” helped new workplace safety standards into law in the state of New York. The benefits that I would like the audience to see is how workplace safety is important by learning about the history of regulation, OSHA, and workers compensation.
Comparison Of Captain Of Industry And Robber Barons Of The Gilded Age
484 Words | 2 PagesThese men trying to create and build these monopolies, corner markets, and increase profits the men never cared too much about who they hurt or what the effect of what their actions were. All they ever cared about is the money and the goods coming their way. For example, in the article “Captain of Industry or Robber Barons?” it states “workers were treated badly by the capitalists and their management organizations.
Apush Dbq Industrialization
705 Words | 3 PagesDuring the period of industrialization, between 1865 and the early 1900’s, corporate
Enron Analysis Essay
887 Words | 4 PagesEnron Analysis Enron is a great play which presents a dry story about business in a colorful and cartoonish way and impressed me with a variety of elements, including video, music, choreography, and dance. This is a play depicts the spectacular collapse of a Texan energy giant-Enron. As an audience, I witnessed how a business empire was built on shadows, accruing debts of 38 billion dollars and finally going bust in this two hours and thirty minutes play. In the following passage, I will describe, analyze, and interpret this play both about its script, including characters and plots, and its production, such as the videos, stage props and customs.
Gilded Age Essay
1577 Words | 7 PagesThe work was also dangerous with not much supervising by the government. Workers, on the other hand, had little or even no bargaining power to leave the unsafe conditions. Nowadays, When Americans only pay attention when extreme work strike, levels of abuse are the norm hidden in the factories around the globe. Although the condition seems much improved, consumers don’t know the true fact- “Today, American citizens simply cannot know the working conditions of the factories that make the products they buy.
Finance Case Study: The Wilkerson Company
895 Words | 4 PagesThe pumps that the Wilkerson company produces are the “bread and butter” of this company. These products are produced at a high rate with a high price competition. As stated earlier, due to the severe price cutting by the competitors, the pre- tax margin of the company dropped extremely low to 3% percent and gross margin to 19.5%. Another product that the company produces are valves. The valves have remained steady around its planned gross margin of 35% with actual of 34.9%; these products are sold and shipped in huge bulk.
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Essay
1743 Words | 7 PagesThe Fifth Avenue Association of the City of New York, the Committee on Safety of the City of New York, among other organizations, worked together and presented issues before the Governor and Legislature of the state. The state government then passed an Act, which created a Commission. Said Commission was appointed to investigate the fire, Harris and Blanck, and their factory's conditions. As one can imagine, this investigation did not bode well for Harris and Blanck. Prior to the Commission’s actions it was already known that the factory was a menace to those who worked within its walls.
Upton Sinclair's Horrible Working Conditions In The Meatpacking Industry
775 Words | 4 PagesIn The Jungle, Upton Sinclair explains how horrible working conditions were for people in the meatpacking industry. Have you ever wondered what effect Upton Sinclair had on American industry? The Jungle is about the poor working conditions and the very poor sanitation in 1906. We will also be talking about the backstory behind Upton Sinclair. Upton Sinclair discovered how bad working areas were.
The Big Business In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1076 Words | 5 PagesMany people believe that big businesses pose a threat to the future of America. Big business owners continue to get rich by taking advantage of its employees and their consumers, leaving them in a continuous state of demand. One of the first large corporations to form in America
Progressivism In The Gilded Age
1411 Words | 6 PagesThe fired had took with it 146 worker lives and wounded 71 workers, because the factory owner chained shut the door so the workers cannot have unauthorized breaks. Not only that, but the factory’s facilities were worn out and old that it disintegrated almost immediately. A year before the horrendous deaths of these workers, they “had gone out on strike demanding union recognition, higher wages, and better safety conditions” (The American Yawp, Ch.20-2). Yet, this is how they responded to the workers’ demands. Due to occurrences like the Triangle Shirtwaist factory, it called for many activists raised and pushed forward reforming America, and the government to interfere with the economy.
Ethical Issues In The Movie Erin Brockovich
735 Words | 3 PagesThis movie “Erin Brockovich” present few number of business ethical issues. This film is based on true story and demonstrates few business ethical issues for their own profit. The movie describes the story of Erin Brockovich who is a struggling single mother who becomes connected to Ed Masry’s law firm because of an unfortunate car accident, and begins working at the law firm out of desperation for an income. As she spends time filing papers as a clerk, she becomes interested in the human nature of the medical cases and persuades Ed Masry to allow her to investigate further. Erin spends numerous hours examining these cases and finds a link to between the community members of Hinkley, CA and a company by the name of Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), who have a plant in Hinkley.
Business Ethics Case Study: What Is Foxconn's Ethical Issue?
803 Words | 4 PagesWhat is Foxconn’s unethical issue? In mid 2010, Foxconn Technology Group (Foxconn) was facing a crisis of having its workers held protests and riots against the company in Shenzhen, China. Being the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer (Pun, 2010), the company exploited its migrant workers by providing them with exceptionally low pay and allowing unacceptable number of overtime working hours in the manufacturing site. Such method of raising workers’ efficiency is unethical in the eyes of many.
More about A Dangerous Company Analysis
Civil Action J Shlichtman Case
335 Words | 2 PagesA Brief Summary Of A Civil Action
396 Words | 2 PagesTriangle Shirtwaist Factory Workers During The Progressive Movement
1270 Words | 6 PagesFrances Perkins Shirtwaist Factory Fire
532 Words | 3 PagesComparison Of Captain Of Industry And Robber Barons Of The Gilded Age
484 Words | 2 PagesApush Dbq Industrialization
705 Words | 3 PagesEnron Analysis Essay
887 Words | 4 PagesGilded Age Essay
1577 Words | 7 PagesFinance Case Study: The Wilkerson Company
895 Words | 4 PagesTriangle Shirtwaist Factory Essay
1743 Words | 7 PagesUpton Sinclair's Horrible Working Conditions In The Meatpacking Industry
775 Words | 4 PagesThe Big Business In Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
1076 Words | 5 PagesProgressivism In The Gilded Age
1411 Words | 6 PagesEthical Issues In The Movie Erin Brockovich
735 Words | 3 PagesBusiness Ethics Case Study: What Is Foxconn's Ethical Issue?
803 Words | 4 Pages