What's going on: Clearly the E-Industry is going towards a bad direction. The E-waste has become a problem for both the environment and companies. Where, based on bussinessweek.com, 43 US company sells its e-waste to Asia. On the other hand, the environment is affected with every e-waste recycling company. The e-waste is handed to companies that are located in near of populated areas. The children as in Asia became threatened by a toxin that causes neurological damages.
Interesting: The first interesting point the article talked about is when Brianne Douglas, vice-president for marketing said "We're doing everything we can to play by the law, to save the environment, and to run a successful business". Douglas here has brought the company's attention in helping the environment and on the same time earning profit. However, in my second interesting point is when Robert Houghton, president of Redemtech, an e-waste processor in Columbus, Ohio stated "Ninety percent of electronics recyclers are cheaters," and he adds "This industry has a tradition of no accountability." Houghton has brought to my attention something that most people are disregarding, which is the affect of recycled e-waste on the environment versus the simplicity of technology. Thomas L. Varkonyi, proprietor of Metal Recycling in El Paso ships the e-waste to Mexico. Varkonyi stated that Mexican labor is cheaper, and he adds "If you wanted to break those rules [regulation of the toxic of e-waste], it would be easy because you can pay off anyone [in Mexico]". In those statements the ethical dilemma and cheap labor arose and both resolve each other issue. The ethical dilemma was between the company's profitability and the toxic e-waste.
Involvement: For first situation of Douglas I would personally act exactly as what he did. The company here has kept its reputation for both the owners and costumers eyes. For the second situation with Houghton, he showed the e-waste recycle industry failure to save the environment. Personally I would also act upon what he did; the ethical dilemma in this article is the large peace. I would act ethically first before looking at the company's attention. And finally for Varkonyi, I would prefer to contact a legal, safe e-waste recycle company that saves the environment than to look for the cheap labor.
Citation: E-Waste: The Dirty Secret of Recycling Electronics. Published October 15, 2008 by Ellen Gibson, a correspondent in BusinessWeek's Silicon, Businessweek.com.
Yousef Alomran
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