Deontological Examination of SBC Communications Inc.
             The current blatant examples of corporate greed and accompanying devastation thrust upon stockholders and employees have shocked many Americans. Enron and WorldCom are only two companies that have ruined the lifestyle and financial security of so many. The article titled "SBC Says It Will Cut 11,000 Jobs – 3,000 in the State" (Pham, reprint) points out yet another situation where thousands of workers will be without a job, even though the company posted a $7.2 billion profit in 2001 and $46 billion in sales in 2001.
             Nevertheless, SBC Communications Inc. blames government regulations for the reduction in profits and sales last year. While it appears that the claim is bogus, the company has implemented a series of layoffs that will cut the employee rolls to a bare minimum. On the surface it appears that the company's actions are immoral or maybe even unethical. Percesepe (1995) defines "moral" as principles or rules of conduct that govern an individual or society, and "ethics" as the systematic attempt to understand moral concepts and to justify moral principles and theories. This essay will examine the SBC layoffs within the methodology of deontology.
             Burtness' (1999) bottom line when defining deontology is its universalizability. "Deontological methods distinguish moral from non-moral judgments and work with moral obligations considered to be universally applicable" (Burtness, 1999, p. 59). To apply this test to the SBC Communication Inc. layoff situation necessitates that a number of conditions be discussed, including clarification of the word "deontology" and examination of various characteristics of SBC's situation.
             Deontology is Greek for "it is necessary." Thus, deontological theories claim that the morality of an action depends on its intrinsic nature, or on its motives. It is concerned ...