Abstract
In this paper, we draw inferences from the Nobel laureate Amartya Sen’s book, The Idea of Justice to inform the organisational justice literature. The extant societal-level theories of justice tend to emphasise aspects that are analogous to either the procedural or distributive dimensions of organisational justice. The Senian idea of comprehensive justice is different in that it synthesises the procedural- and distributive-related dimensions at the societal-level. We theorise that the Senian notion could be applied at the organisational-level to facilitate outcomes that are actually valued by the workforce. Further, we contend that the emphasis on non-parochialism in the Senian notion of justice makes it particularly relevant to the ethics of multi-national corporations (MNCs) operating in alien cultures. To support our contention, we analyse the lean manufacturing practices of a Japanese MNC operating in India. Our case analysis demonstrates how Senian thinking helps one surface unjust outcomes that would otherwise go unacknowledged. Our analysis also offers tentative support to Senian claims about the capacity of human behaviour to undermine well-designed institutions. Concurring with the Senian view, which favours combating manifest injustice rather than fixating over designing perfectly just institutions, we derive some normative implications to advance the cause of striving for outcomes that are actually valued by the workforce.
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Notes
The more important basic liberties listed by Rawls (1999, p. 53) include political liberty (i.e. the right to vote and hold public office); liberty of conscience and freedom of thought; and other rights such as the freedom of speech and assembly; freedom from psychological oppression, physical assault and dismemberment; the right to hold personal property and freedom from arbitrary arrest and seizure as defined by the concept of law.
Rawls distinguishes between natural primary goods (i.e. health, vigour, imagination, and so forth) and social primary goods (i.e. rights, liberties, opportunities, income and wealth, and the social bases of self-respect). He notes that while the former do get influenced by the basic social structure, they are not directly under its control. Thus, the second principle mainly pertains to arrangements for distributing social primary goods. Rawls appears to half-heartedly acknowledge the fact that natural primary goods can greatly increase one's access to social primary goods and vice versa. This potential for mutual influence, of course, raises important questions. For instance, would it be just to expect those enjoying good health to subsidize healthcare for the infirm? "Yes, but only if it meant everyone benefitting from cross subsidies," would be the ambiguous Rawlsian answer.
In 2010, following several allegations of unintended accelerations leading to fatal accidents, Toyota recalled over seven million cars in the US alone. In his testimony to a US Congressional Committee, the CEO Akoyo Toyoda admitted that Toyota had grown its overseas operations too rapidly; thereby implying that the company had failed to indoctrinate its new employees and suppliers to the demanding tenets of lean manufacturing (see Heskett 2011, pp. 128–132).
Cognitive dissonance theory holds that when individuals experience conflicting feelings (i.e. dissonance), they experience psychological discomfort and make efforts to reach a state of consonance. At TKM, earning high wages and feeling disempowered owing to a functioning being deprived did not go together. The employees might have subconsciously tried to redress their cognitive dissonance through protests.
As per Rawls (1971), justice operates at three levels: global, domestic, and local. He asserts that justice-related principles embraced at the domestic level by a society extend their influence outwards to inform a nation's foreign policy at a global level and percolate downwards to influence justice at the local level. So, one could theorise about business organisations as entities operating at the local level of a Rawlsian justice delivery mechanism (for a more detailed analysis see Lindblom 2011).
The office being recommended will not substitute current institutional arrangements at the societal-level. The labour courts and fair work commissions will no doubt have to continue intervening as impartial spectators when required. As envisaged by us, an ombudsperson at the organisational-level would reduce the workload of the judicial institutions by intervening at an earlier stage. As apparent from the "automobile manufacturing as an essential service" ruling in the TKM case, formal legal interventions, across democracies, tend to be niti-centric. We believe that someone who actually understands and has experienced the work environment in question would be more likely to embrace Sen's notion of comprehensive (i.e. nyaya-centric) justice and enhance just outcomes at the local level. Of course, the modalities of selecting and training an ombudsperson from amongst regular employees will need careful consideration. As a practical measure, to ensure neutrality, the local level ombudsperson could be compensated by the public exchequer.
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Shrivastava, S., Jones, R., Selvarajah, C. et al. Organisational Justice: A Senian Perspective. J Bus Ethics 135, 99–116 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2466-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2466-3