For over a century, Penman Industries has prided itself on providing our customers with high
quality, stylish writing utensils at an affordable cost. We have done this by building a
corporate culture of care for the well-being of our employees, suppliers, and customers by
taking socially responsible steps that make a positive impact on their lives. We have worked
hard to be ranked among Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” over 20 consecutive
years. We have earned this ranking by providing pay equity, flexible work schedule, and
recruiting a diverse talent pool. We also built a corporate culture where everyone, at every
level of our organization, has a role in ensuring that every aspect of our Penman Industries’
operation reflects our caring philosophy (Yohn, 2021). We count on each of you to uphold
and defend our values.
Today, we learned about a recent whistleblower media report concerning our top ink
supplier, Tusche Lithography. The report indicates that the company has been operating
under poor employee work conditions, which include the use of child labor, low wages, long
working hours mandates, and a lack of employee benefits. We commend the whistleblowers’
actions. These practices go against our caring philosophy, are a violation of our supplier
agreement, and are not condoned business practices.
We take this report seriously. As a result, we have suspended future orders and will continue
to do so until the level of operation as required by our supplier agreement is met. We have
also dispatched a team to assess and evaluate when the conditions and timing are right to
initiate new orders. In the interim, we have secured agreements with other suppliers to
acquire the ink needed to continue production without disruption.
Finally, we extend our sincerest apologies to the employees of Tusche Lithography and will
advocate for better working conditions moving forward. We also apologize to you, our
employees, for any alarm and embarrassment that this report has caused. We are doing
everything in our power to right this wrong and plan to keep you abreast as pertinent
developments arise. Feel free to direct any questions or concerns that you may have to our
Thank you for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.
Reference
Cardon, P. W. (2021). Business communication: Developing leaders for a networked world
(4th ed.). McGraw Hill Education.
Yohn, D. L. (2021). Company Culture Is Everyone’s Responsibility. Harvard Business
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