Why Is Standard Oil Unethical

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Rockefeller had partnered up with a colleague to establish a shipping company that made significant profits during the Civil War. These profits were used to start up Standard Oil, which was in the oil refinery business. Rockefeller and Standard Oil had different types of business power such as economic power, legal power, political power and power over individuals. During this time, the government did not have policies to ensure fair business practices and Standard Oil took advantage of that. Standard Oil possessed business power that it used to compel railroads to offer discounted shipping rates. The company used its economic power to change society in terms of competition. Standard Oil 's competitors could not compete on an equal platform.

However, ethical practices are not determined by the ability to explain certain decisions or actions. Therefore, Rockefeller did act unethically in more ways than one. An example was the threat to competitors that they had the option of either selling to him or risking his wrath and perishing. He enjoyed discounts that were disallowed by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The strategy of using the employees of competitors to investigate the strategies used by the competitors was another illustration of unethical practices. The fact that the law of the day did not prohibit such practices does not make them ethical. Ethics are independent of the provisions of law and are based on what can be deemed fair and right. However, by the standards of today, the actions by Rockefeller would be deemed to be felonies under the Sherman Antitrust Act whose aim was to prevent monopolies of any kind (McNeese

The company violated its social contract through unfair business practices. The evidence of what happened to competitors when Standard Oil exercised its business power illustrates the limits of business power. The dominance theory is suitable for this case given that the company used its power to exercise advantages over competitors, and either acquired them or stifled them. Rockefeller acted unethically in both the standards of his time and today with the difference being that those actions would have been felonies in today 's world. The was a contradiction between the personal and business ethics of Rockefeller given that he was an active churchgoer who also contributed to charity but did not shy away from eliminating his competition using unscrupulous means. Oil prices went down by more than 50%, and this achieved the greater good as explained in the utilitarianism theory. The assertion that nice and ethical practices would have led to the similar success for the company at that time is not viable. The market forces were significantly different during that