The purpose of this study is to explore relationships between company’s characteristics, the status of business ethics education, employee perceptions of corporate business ethics, and organizational performance. A total of 161 small- and medium-sized apparel companies participated in a survey and data was analyzed using cross-tabulation, ANOVA, and SPSS PROCESS. The results show that, larger companies involved with export are more likely to implement business ethics education, whereas no company characteristic is associated with perceptions of corporate business ethics. Furthermore, apparel companies that implemented or planned to implement business ethics education, have employees with more positive perceptions of corporate business ethics and better organizational performance than fashion companies that have no plan to implement such education. In addition, companies in the apparel sector with higher employee perceptions of corporate business ethics had greater organizational performance than apparel companies with lower employee perceptions of corporate business ethics. This study emphasizes the need to implement business ethics education to enhance employee perceptions of company business ethics, which in turn promotes organizational performance. It is expected that the results of this study will positively affect the development and expansion of business ethics education programs and contribute to the foundation of knowledge for business ethics education for fashion companies.

이 연구는 최근 3년간 대학정원 감축으로 인한 재정적 위기에서, 우리나라 사립대학의 경쟁력 확보를 위한 주요 수단을 아카데믹 캐피탈리즘 관점에서 분석하고자 한다. 우리나라 사립대학은 대학정원을 감축 하면서 주 수입원인 대학등록금 감소로 인한 재정적 공백을 메우기 위해, 산학협력단 및 학교기업전입금 수입 증대, 계약학과 설치와 학교기업 운영 확대, 산학협력 전문 지원 인력 투입, 창업교수 수, 교내·외 창업기업 수, 창업기업 고용인원 수 등의 증대, 특허 출원 실적, 기술이전 수입 및 계약, 학교기업 운영, 교원 창업기업을 통해 수업료 이외의 다른 수익 창출 확대, 사립대학 간 운영수지의 격차 등 아카데믹 캐피탈리즘의 현상적 특징이 분석되었다. 결국 우리나라 아카데믹 캐피탈리즘은 사립대학의 교원 역할, 재정 구조 및 운영 방향을 외부와의 시장지향적으로 변화시켰으며, 이는 대학 간 재정적 격차를 확대하는 결과로 이어지고 있다.

The purpose of the present study was to generate a list of business ethics components according to business area for small and medium-sized fashion companies. Based on the literature review, 21 components of business ethics components were identified within five business areas. Ten CEOs(Chief Executive Officers) each participated in an in-depth interview, sharing ethical and unethical cases from their own businesses. Constant comparative analysis was used to generate important business ethics components from those cases. In results, important business ethics components for each business area are: 1) using human-friendly materials, strengthening sustainable technologies, using vegan materials, concerning safe process, and reducing waste in the material production and sourcing area, 2) enhancing an efficiency in design, developing recycle/reuse designs, avoiding to copy designs, and using messages for public interest in the product design area, 3) concerning fair-trade, reducing harmful substance, saving energy, and using ethical supply channels in the distribution and logistics area, 4) acquiring certifications, promoting consumer protection, avoiding exaggerative/false advertisements, and promoting social contributions in the management and marketing area, and 5) promoting workers’ rights, complying with the law, and investing on employee educations in the labor management area. All of the ethical and unethical cases of the ten companies have involved aspects of the 21 components, thereby enhancing understandings on how each issue is being seriously considered and/or handled in the small and medium-sized fashion companies. Study findings may provide a basis for development of a research model for quantitative studies and/or educational programs related to business ethics in the fashion industry.