ELICITING MILLENNIAL PERSPECTIVES ON ETHICS IN SAFETY PRODUCT RECALLS TO ENSURE CONSUMER PROTECTION AND INDUSTRY SUSTAINABILITY

Abstract

The pressure to gain market share in competitive markets plays a role in expedited production, less time in research and development, and minimal product testing; these actions leave the flaws to be pinpointed by consumers instead of the respective companies. Product recalls are an economic threat to suppliers and manufacturers and a main concern to the public’s health; the complexity of a globalized supply chain with areas of unregulated safety standards contribute to increase in recalls. The adoption of technology and ease in usage of smart devices equipped with access to social media has provided consumers with the power to report malfunctions to larger audience and government agencies thus directly influencing consumer behavior. The cost incurred by companies after a recall are estimated at $55.5 billion a year including mortality, productivity losses, and medical expenses; specifically, the direct cost to the food company can go up to $10 million on lost sales and brand image reputation. The ethics within industries; what motivates industries from not being forthcoming and delaying the recall of products that cause harm to others and need to be recalled? Research focused on eliciting millennial perspectives on safety recalls on significant consumable products, baby products, and technology related recalls with emphasis on the CPSC recall of 1.9 million Galaxy Note 7 and 2.8 million top-load washers for a total of 4.7 million recalled products in 7 weeks a period from September 15 to November 04, 2016.

JEL: D18, L60, M11, A14, F23, M14

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