BusinessWeek/Harris poll: Only a Third of Americans Think Large Companies Have Ethical Business Practices.Business Editors NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 24, 2002 Corporate Backlash: 79% say company executives put personal interests before employees or shareholders; 73% say government should regulate reg·u·late v. 1. To control or direct according to rule, principle, or law. 2. To adjust to a particular specification or requirement. 3. To adjust a mechanism for accurate and proper functioning. 4. companies' retirement plans to prevent future Enron-like debacles According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a new BusinessWeek/Harris poll, only 33% of Americans feel large companies have ethical eth·i·cal adj. 1. Of, relating to, or dealing with ethics. 2. Being in accordance with the accepted principles of right and wrong that govern the conduct of a profession. business practices and just 26% believe they are straightforward and honest in their dealings with consumers and employees. Even as two-thirds of Americans still think corporations make good products and compete well in the global economy, 79% of Americans believe corporate executives put their own personal interests ahead of workers' and shareholders,' as Enron Enron A U.S. energy-trading and utilities company that housed one of the biggest accounting frauds in history. Enron's executives employed accounting practices that falsely inflated the company's revenues, which, at the height of the scandal, made the firm become the seventh officials are alleged to have done. During the 1990s boom, Americans had mixed views about the world of business. Most applauded the bounty bounty, payment made by a government bounty, amount paid by a government for the achievement of certain economic or other goals. It often takes the form of a premium paid for the increased production or export of certain goods. produced by the U.S. economy, support for deregulation Deregulation The reduction or elimination of government power in a particular industry, usually enacted to create more competition within the industry. Notes: Traditional areas that have been deregulated are the telephone and airline industries. was on the upswing Upswing An upward turn in a security's price after a period of falling prices. , and many rushed to grab a slice of the pie by investing in the rising stock market. Now the Enron Corp. scandal--coming on the heels of a sharp recession, a tumbling market, and an extended stretch during which many of the most vaunted vaunt v. vaunt·ed, vaunt·ing, vaunts v.tr. To speak boastfully of; brag about. v.intr. To speak boastfully; brag. See Synonyms at boast1. n. 1. business success stories of the late 1990s proved to be chimeras--anti-corporate sentiment Sentiment can refer to:
v. re·vived, re·viv·ing, re·vives v.tr. 1. To bring back to life or consciousness; resuscitate. 2. To impart new health, vigor, or spirit to. 3. . "The backlash is beginning," warned General Electric Co. Chief Executive Jeffrey R. Immelt Jeffrey Robert Immelt (born February 19 1956, Cincinnati, OH) is the current chairman of the board and chief executive officer of General Electric. He was selected by GE's Board of Directors in 2000 to replace John Francis Welch Jr. (Jack Welch) following his retirement. at a talk with BusinessWeek BusinessWeek is a business magazine published by McGraw-Hill. It was first published in 1929 (as The Business Week) under the direction of Malcolm Muir, who was serving as president of the McGraw-Hill Publishing company at the time. Editor-in-Chief Stephen Stephen, 1097?–1154, king of England (1135–54). The son of Stephen, count of Blois and Chartres, and Adela, daughter of William I of England, he was brought up by his uncle, Henry I of England, who presented him with estates in England and France and B. Shepard Shep·ard , Alan Bartlett, Jr. 1923-1998. American astronaut who on a 15-minute flight on May 5, 1961, became the first American in space. He also commanded the Apollo 14 mission to the moon (1971). Noun 1. in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of on Jan. 15. "Credibility Believability. The major legal application of the term credibility relates to the testimony of a witness or party during a trial. Testimony must be both competent and credible if it is to be accepted by the trier of fact as proof of an issue being litigated. and trust is everything (in business). And because of the recession, because of Enron, that trust has evaporated evaporated reduced in volume by evaporation; concentrated to a denser form. ." While the BusinessWeek/Harris poll shows that a core 16% of Americans have "a great deal of confidence" in people running major companies--up slightly from the 15% who felt that way in 1999--the percentage who have "hardly any" confidence in business leaders nearly doubled to 24%, from 13% in 1999. Watchdogs for such companies fared slightly worse. Of those surveyed, 28% had "hardly any confidence" in government agencies, 29% had similar feelings towards the accounting field. Lawyers were seen much less favorably fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. ; 47% percent expressed "hardly any confidence" in their effectiveness. In light of the Enron debacle, the public mood could become increasingly at odds with big business and the culture of investing. A crackdown crack·down n. An act or example of forceful regulation, repression, or restraint: a crackdown on crime. Noun 1. on the accounting industry seems likely, the Feb. 4th issue of BusinessWeek reports. Board directors may get hit with new rules about conflict of interest, as well as new responsibilities to oversee corporate audits. Companies also could face restrictions on the ability to fund 401(k)s with their own stock. According to the poll, 73% feel the government should regulate companies more closely to prevent a situation similar to Enron, where employees lost large sums of their 401K and retirement money as the stock crashed. The BusinessWeek/Harris poll in the February February: see month. 4th issue of BusinessWeek, was conducted by telephone between January January: see month. 16 and January 21, 2002. The survey was conducted among a nationwide cross section of 886 respondents In the context of marketing research, a representative sample drawn from a larger population of people from whom information is collected and used to develop or confirm marketing strategy. , 18 years and older. Results should be accurate within 3 percentage points. For full poll results, go to the February 4 issue online at www.businessweek.com BusinessWeek/Harris Enron Poll Notes on reading the results: The percentage of respondents has been included for each item. An asterisk (1) See Asterisk PBX. (2) In programming, the asterisk or "star" symbol (*) means multiplication. For example, 10 * 7 means 10 multiplied by 7. The * is also a key on computer keypads for entering expressions using multiplication. (*) signifies a value of less than one-half percent. A dash represents a value of zero. Percentages may not always add up to 100% because of computer rounding or the acceptance of multiple answers from respondents answering that question. BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS Q405 As far as people in charge of running (INTERVIEWER NOTE: READ EACH ITEM) are concerned, would you say you have a great deal of confidence, only some confidence, or hardly any confidence at all in them?
Q406
1 2 3 8 9
(RANDOMIZE) A Great Only Hardly Not Decline to
Deal Some Any Sure (v) Answer (v)
---- ---- --- -------- ----------
06 Major companies
2002 16 56 24 3 *
2000 19 58 17 5 -
1999 15 69 13 3 -
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q850 How would you rate large U.S. companies on (INTERVIEWER NOTE:
READ EACH ITEM - excellent, pretty good, only fair, or poor?
(ROTATE ITEMS)
Q851 1 2 3 4 8 9
Pretty Only Not Decline to
Excellent Good Fair Poor Sure(v) Answer (v)
--------- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----------
1 Having ethical
business practices
2002 3 30 42 22 3 *
2000 4 33 42 19 2 *
2 Being straightforward
and honest in dealing
with consumers and
employees
2002 3 23 46 27 1 *
2000 4 20 45 29 2 *
3 Making good products
and competing in a
global economy
2002 17 50 25 6 1 -
2000 18 50 26 5 1 *
1996 14 44 33 9 * *
(TREND: Aug. 2000)
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q855 Thinking about the power of different groups in influencing
government policy, politicians and policy-makers in Washington, do you
think big companies have too much influence, too little influence, or
about the right amount of influence?
2002 2000 1999
---- ---- ----
1 Too much influence 70 74 82
2 Too little influence 3 5 8
3 About the right amount 24 20 3
8 Not sure (v) 2 1 7
9 Decline to answer (v) * - -
(TREND: 2000)
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q860 How familiar are you with the recent events at Enron - very
familiar, somewhat familiar, not very familiar or not familiar at all?
2002
----
1 Very familiar 16
2 Somewhat familiar 52
3 Not very familiar 16
4 Not familiar at all 15
8 Not sure (v) 1
9 Decline to answer (v) *
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q865 Enron executives have been charged with putting their own
personal interests ahead of workers and shareholders. Do you think
this is true of many other large companies, or not?
2002
----
1 Is true 79
2 Is not true 14
8 Not sure (v) 6
9 Decline to answer (v) *
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q870 Enron employees had a lot of their 401k and retirement money
in the company's stock, so they lost most of it when the company's
stock crashed. Do you think government should regulate companies more
closely to prevent this from happening at other companies, or not?
2002
----
1 Government should regulate 73
2 Government should not regulate 23
8 Not sure (v) 4
9 Decline to answer (v) 1
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q875 Given what happened with Enron, are you more likely to invest
in the stock market, less likely or won't it have any impact on how
you might invest?
2002
----
1 More likely 6
2 Less likely 30
3 Won't have any impact 60
8 Not sure (v) 3
9 Decline to answer (v) *
BASE: ALL RESPONDENTS
Q880 How much confidence do you have in (INTERVIEWER NOTE: READ
EACH ITEM) being effective watchdogs over big companies -- a great
deal of confidence, only some confidence, or hardly any confidence at
all?
Q881 1 2 3 8 9
A Great
Deal of Only Some Hardly Any Not Decline to
(RANDOMIZE) Confidence Confidence Confidence Sure (v) Answer (v)
---------- ---------- ---------- -------- ----------
3 Government
agencies
2002 11 60 28 1 *
1 Accountants
2002 11 58 29 2 *
2 Lawyers
2002 7 43 47 1 *
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