Are Business Ethics an Oxymoron

Are Business Ethics an Oxymoron?

from aish.com by: Rabbi Benjamin Blech

Looking at the headlines of the past few years – Bernie Madoff, Enron, the subprime mortgage scandal and a host of other examples – we get the feeling that ethical practices play no role in that world dedicated solely to the goal of maximizing profits.

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Jewish Business Ethics: Halakhot of Investing in the Stock Market

Jewish Business Ethics: Halakhot of Investing in the stock market

from jewishvirtuallibrary.org by Rabbi Asher Meir

I. THE NATURE OF STOCK OWNERSHIP

The extent to which stock ownership is considered active partnership in a corporation is a critical question in numerous areas of halakha. Conceivably, by buying a single share of stock a person could find himself committing transgressions from all four sections of the Shulchan Arukh! Some examples include:

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The Jewish Ethicist: Complaints

The Jewish Ethicist: Complaints

from aish.com by: Rabbi Dr. Asher Meier, Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem

Q. I have a worker who is always complaining. Maybe if he is so unhappy I should just let him go.

A. It is true that an unhappy worker can be bad for both the worker and the workplace. In one place the Talmud likens the matchmaking process to the splitting of the sea at the Exodus (1); in another place it likens making a living to the splitting of the sea. (2) Perhaps this is a hint that finding the suitable workplace is a little bit like finding a suitable spouse. If the worker is unhappy, maybe that means that his “workplace made in heaven” is really someplace else.

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Jewish Business Ethics: An Introductory Perspective

Jewish Business Ethics: An Introductory Perspective

from jlaw.com by Rabbi Yitzchok Breitowitz

Many of us have a mistaken idea of what is within the compass or scope of our religious traditions. People know that lighting Chanukah candles is something you talk about with a rabbi, observance of the Shabbat, the laws of Kashrut, etc., but many people have an attitude that if I don’t tell the rabbi how to run his business, the rabbi shouldn’t tell me how to run mine. Very often, we live fragmented dichotomized lives where what we do in the office from 9 to 5 (or if you’re a workaholic from 8 to 7), is our own private affair and then at home we observe the holidays, or the rituals of Judaism, on the weekends, or three-days-a-year, or whatever.

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The Jewish Ethicist – Beggars’ Letters

The Jewish Ethicist – Beggars’ Letters

from aish.com by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir, Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem

Q. Many charity seekers come to my door with recommendation letters from well-known rabbis or organizations. Can I rely on these letters to determine who is truly needy?

A. Giving letters of recommendation to help worthy charity recipients is a centuries-old tradition in Jewish communities. Knowing that an august authority vouches for the bearer, or even that he or she knows of them, goes a long way towards allaying the worries of a giver.

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The Jewish Ethicist – Pollution

The Jewish Ethicist – Pollution

From aish.com By: Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir, Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem

Q. Does Jewish law forbid pollution? Does the polluter have to pay damages, like anyone else who causes harm?

A.Among the very first commandments given in the Torah are those providing for payments for damages. In chapter 20 of the book of Exodus we have the revelation on Mount Sinai and the Ten Commandments, and in the very next chapter we find the nuts and bolts of damages for battery, damages caused by animals, and so on.

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The Jewish Ethicist – Renege

The Jewish Ethicist – Renege

from aish.com by: by

Q. I agreed to use a certain service provider and even signed an agreement, but the agreement is not valid until I obtain some authorizations from the authorities, so I am technically able to withdraw. In the meantime I came across a better deal. Can I renege on the original agreement?

A. Jewish law, based on commandment and personal commitment, includes many obligations that are not enforceable. This is true even in business regulation. So even when an agreement is not enforceable, there may be an obligation to uphold it.

The extent of this obligation is discussed in the following Talmudic passage:

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The Impact of Jewish Values on Marketing and Business Practices

The Impact of Jewish Values on Marketing and Business Practices

fro jlaw.com by Hershey H. Friedman

Judaism, which relies on the Torah for its written law, has had a great impact on marketing and business. The Torah is replete with precepts dealing with business, and the Talmud, the source of Jewish oral law, elaborates and expands Torah law. The process is ongoing and rabbinical authorities today build on the decisions of their predecessors to apply Jewish law to modern problems. Some of the issues examined in this paper include: honesty in the marketplace, fair pricing, employer-employee relations, and environmental issues. Jewish law is not only concerned with practical legal advice but in encouraging individuals to go beyond the requirements of the law and practice the “way of the pious.” Judaism does not have a negative attitude towards business and wealth — indeed, most of the Talmudic sages had occupations and some were quite wealthy — but riches must be acquired honestly and used to help the poor, the needy, and the stranger.

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Jewish Medical Ethics: The Role of a Physician in Jewish Law

Jewish Medical Ethics: The Role of a Physician in Jewish Law

from jewishvirtuallibrary. org by Daniel Eiseneberg M.D.

The Torah states: “I am the L-rd that heals you!” (Exodus 15:26) This verse implies that G-d does not need man to cure the afflictions that He creates. If so, by what virtue does man attempt to “short circuit” His will and attempt his own meager cures? Does man have any right to heal at all, and if he does, are there any limitations on how it may be accomplished. Is every action done in the name of therapy justified, solely because a physician performs it? Because Judaism recognizes the enormity of these questions, it requires direct permission from G-d to permit the practice of medicine and carefully circumscribes the limits of medical practice. Fortunately, the duty to save one’s fellow man is well grounded in the Torah and the restrictions are discussed at length in our codes of Jewish law.

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