Business and Professional Ethics Journal

Volume 36, Issue 3, Fall 2017

Gina Vega
Pages 285-296

Volkswagen
Business as Usual

This paper describes the general disregard for relationships that leads to unethical behavior in business as well as in one’s personal life, using an illustration from 4,000 years ago and from today. Volkswagen has been characterized as just one more example of ethical violations that lead to long-lasting environmental, financial, and personal impacts. The story of Jacob’s life reflects the origin of this type of ethical behavior and stands in parallel to the eighty-year history of the Volkswagen corporation.