Sunday, September 25, 2011

Johnson and Johnson Recalls and Company Bottom Line


Good one for White Collar Crime. What do you think about this on...
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/business/16johnson-and-johnson.html?_r=1&ref=defectiveproducts

22 comments:

  1. “With such a diversity of products and operating companies, Johnson & Johnson’s overall business has not suffered significantly.” With millions of recalls for contaminated and defective products, not to mention a decrease in consumer demand due to lack of trust in the company, you would think Johnson and Johnson might be more proactive in gaining back its reputation. J&J’s lack of information as to how and why these things keep happening were brought up numerous times throughout the article. The biggest problem I have with that is that as an ordinary citizen I am required to explain every move I make when it is questioned by someone of authority. If I bend or break a rule/law then I am penalized financially, required to fix it the issue AND in some cases perform a service to the community. This article shows why white collar crimes happen and continue to happen on such a large scale. Obviously corporations can get away with them as long as they have the money to do so.

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  2. Nicole I totally agree with you. I would say that this definitely falls into the branch of white collar crime that we are currently talking about. This, to me, is a great example of the medical industry being involved in occupational crime. I suppose that it could be argued that it is not a crime since J&J started recalling products as soon as federal employees came in and told them they couldn't sell those products anymore. However, when one of the problems is not cleaning equipment well enough I would say that at the very least there were some people who knew that there was a problem. Also for such a major corporation to have so much publicity due to this recall I would say that there is substantial evidence pointing toward the heads of the corporation having known about this problem previously. Of course proving this could be a large problem.
    I second the thought that it is quite odd that J&J is not being more proactive in gaining back it's reputation.

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  3. I used to work in retail at a pharmacy. Restocking, I realized generic store brands existed at cheaper the cost with the same quality. Then I thought to myself – why would anyone buy the well-known brand name when an identical product at a lower price existed? Because people mostly choose the products if they are sold by a brand name they trust. However, it will hurt your name if your standards degrade and word gets out about it. Luckily for J&J they have a broad range of products they will only take a small hit in this area of the market. Clearly J&J’s manufacturing is to blame, but maintaining quality costs money. Money they might not have due to a few other failures. But letting McNeil point the finger back at the F.D.A. saying it’s their fault is not the way to go. J&J is losing their integrity at this rate, and will crash and burn before this decade ends unless they step it up.

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  4. This is a proper example of the medical industry driving towards an occupational crime. It can be classified as an occupational crime because the company should know how well their products are before delivering it to retail stores. Johnson and Johnson is a very well-known company and to see their products being made improperly is devastating. The company did recall the items that were defaulted because of the quality-control problems and that was a very smart and ethical move that Johnson and Johnson agreed upon. They just need to be more considerate to their customers. I understand that it takes a lot of money to improve the conditions of the defaulted products but it is something worth fixing, because harm can be committed to the consumers. Generic medicine is perfectly fine and Johnson and Johnson need to be aware that their problem is serious and if they want to maintain loyalty to their customers, proper actions need to be taken.

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  5. It sounds like Johnson & Johnson has an issue that proper maintenance and equipment replacement would have prevented. This just goes to show that no matter how big your bottom line is you will do what it takes to make it bigger. Greed has become a BIG problem in our country. J & J executives knew about the problems that were going on in these plants but were hoping that no one would notice. In Porto Rico when consumers were complaining about the mold smell coming from the plastic bottles, J & J did not rush to fix the issue and when the consumers stopped complaining, for a short time, J & J stopped worrying about the problem. The issue could have been taken care of and further complaints would not have happened. It is just like Ford and the Pinto case, the company knew there was a problem with the car and it would cost them more to fix the problem than it would to pay someone off in case of death or injury but Ford learned the hard way and the payout was greater than the fix. All these big companies worry about is the bottom line and it ends up costing them more than the fix.

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  6. This article is a great example of occupational crime, "a violation of the legal codes in the course of activity in a legitimate occupation", as stated in our textbook in chapter 4. I agree with Elizabeth, Johnson & Johnson company should well know how well their products are before they are sent out to retail stores. However, it was of great integrity to have recalled their products in order to fix their problem and be in good satisfaction with their customers, whose trust they do not want to lose. In the article, it is stated that they want to satisfy their customers; however, when consumers complained about the mold smell that came from the plastic bottles, there was no intended rush to have it fixed. They simply didn't want to spend all the money to have the problem solved and months later, after people had stopped complaining, the problem arose again and bit them in the @$$ once again. It's pretty devastating how such white collar crime can easily be covered up, as they easily just let the mold odor pass as if nothing was ever said about it.

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  7. I agree. J & J should have inspected their products before they are sent out. And I am sure that someone was aware that these products weren't "up to code" before they were sent out. I think that J & J are getting comfortable with being a well known and wealthy company. They aren't paying attention to their products and factories because they have put so much trust into their company and they don't check their products regularly. Either that or they have so many lines of products that they can't seem to focus on all of them. With their first recall, you would think they would learn their lesson and stay on their toes when it comes to their products but now they are having to recall many products because they didn't. Yes, atleast they are recalling their products and trying to fix it but could more be done? Yes and did someone know about this beforehand? most likely. These are the times I wish I was an undercover worker or something so I could know the actual story and know the facts but yet again only they know and all we can do is conclude that this is a white collar crime and go with what we hear and read.

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  8. Again, I am not surprised because this is nothing new. Every time you turn on the television there is a different ad advertising a law firm that is willing to sue the drug companies who wronged you. What concerns me is that Johnson and Johnson has been around for as long as I can remember and they have always been a well trusted brand. It seems as though every month they have a new recall and once it does get fixed it’s a temporary. For a company that prides itself on quality, they sure have dropped the ball lately. It took them months to even alert the F.D.A. that there was a foul moldy smell coming from some of their Tylenol bottles. All this seems like to me is just another medical law suit in the makings. At the end of the day Johnson and Johnson is a brand and they are in the business of making money. They won’t even provide their customers with reasonable explanations for why this is happening and when they expect it to fix.

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  9. Wow! To begin I'd say that I agree with the similar statements mentioned above about the negligence on the part of J&J for their "late reaction" to the complaints of the scent of MOLD coming from the bottles. McNeil made a statement saying that J&J had “no higher concern than providing parents with the highest-quality products for their children.” This statement definitely stood out to me. It could be a genuine attempt to capture compassion from the disgruntled yet very trusting consumer. Maybe just whispering “sweet nothing” into the consumer’s ear telling them what they want to hear to reassure there trusted relationships and affirm their future sales after making available the massively extensive items being recalled from the public. Pursuit of Profit? No matter the intent, I find the consumers that are very angry to be somewhat in a vulnerable position. Placing trust in a company who, behind a veil, is grossly negligent by releasing drugs to the public without proper sanitary procedures is occupational crime in the making. I mean so many consumers purchase J&J products for children and babies depending on a reliable product not to cause harm to their child. How do you think these very customers feel or think about hearing the name of their very own J&J massively recalling some of these very products, some for problems that have yet to be revealed or explained? Since medicine and drugs are a component to these mysterious recalls, a high level of vulnerability is also involved which is a key ingredient to a nice juicy occupational crime.

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  10. Occupational crime at its best! Just like biz has said. You would think the products that are used for helping would be the one thing, in this world, that companies would actually care about. BUT NO! All they care about is getting the product out there quickly so they can make their year million dollar bonuses be even larger. I am glad that they did recall all these products and will probably loose a bit of money and that do really seem to faze them much. Johnson & Johnson seem like they do want to get things going properly and I compliment them for that but they shouldn’t have let it get this far in the first place. A few bad seeds in the apple made it ripe for everyone. This is so constant in companies. How are these companies training their employees? Where are the ethics and the care? I’m sorry but the more I read about these White Collar crimes, the more angry I get. This makes me want to become a hermit or something.

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  11. Well, I would basically put much of the blame on the manufacturer, because it seems that quality control is the main issue here. J&J isn't suffering much from the loss of money so far. But if the people that buy products because of brand will eventually move on to generics or other name brands.I think J&J should have handled this situation in a more swift manner than they did. Someone could have died or become very ill because of thier products. But, I guess that's the price "Big Business" has to pay to feed their families!

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  12. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  13. http://abcnews.go.com/US/Conrad_Murray_Trial/michael-jackson-trial-kids-prince-paris-cried-conrad/story?id=14623265

    Murray’s trial for involuntary manslaughter

    What makes me sick is how much this trail is “hear say”, all the evidence points at different directions. I feel that money has tainted this case and has ultimately got Michael Jackson killed. When you getting paid 150,00 a month and chosen by Michael Jackson himself how can you not be a little corrupt? I think money pulled Dr. Murray from is duties as a doctor.

    Where are Michael’s medical records? A man that wealthy you would think would have proper medical records. Also Dr. Murray claimed Michael to be in great condition if so why does he need an oxygen tank and a condom catheter? Another thing that seems fishy about Dr. Murray is that if he’s a doctor you would think he would be better at monitoring the intake level of drugs Michael was taking. This makes me wonder what are his credentials. I also find the testimony from his security guard very interesting. Contaminating evidence buy hiding medications just screams guilty!

    A random thought but Michael Jackson had an interesting choice in staff. His assistant and chief of security look very young. I was rather annoyed to listen to his assistant say “I axed him.” Maybe a better more experienced staffed may have saved him.

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  14. What a bummer, seriously, who can consumers trust now a day? This article concerns me; this is after all, a large company, selling a large number of drug products. Tylenol is a household name, like a handful of other products, and it makes me very upset to know that recalls are even necessary. The fact of this matter is that recalls should not be necessary. I would rather buy and put into my body a generic brand with one to no recalls, than to continue to buy J & J products. At some point these large companies loose focus of their original purpose and are only in it for the money. However, I am glad, that recalls exist, because well, it’s better to have J & J announce a recall and pull products from the shelves of stores, than to make money on unsafe products, at the expense of the consumer, both financially, and health wise.

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  15. WOW!! All these years me personally I always go for the name brand over the store brand, until I got done reading this. This is medicine and equipment that not only elderly people use but children, OF ALL AGES use too!! What are McNeil and associates thinking not correcting these mistakes the first time?! You would think that with all these back to back recalls and the millions of dollars that are being refunded Johnson & Johnson would get their acts right and keep their word when they said that one mistake won’t happen again, not allow it to repeat or allow it to be a continuous act. Sad thing is, people have actually already died from failure to correct their carelessness and what was any compensation to those families, if any? Total example of occupational crime. This has gone too far to be corrected and treated, why has the FDA allowed for something like this to continue and allowed for J&J to continue business? They should be ashamed of themselves and not worry so much about the missing products off the shelves but focus and be more concerned about these pill bottles that have smelly mold odors and copper tasting medicated pills. Shutting down plants will not make this problem go away seeing that it is happening more and more at different locations. As a corporate you can’t just shut down a plant, remain silent about the issues it has caused, and think that the problems will disappear on its own. AS A CORPORATE YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, QUICK, EFFICIATE, AND MAKE IT NOT HAPPEN REPEATEDLY. These are not only HIGH health risk but misrepresented quality and suppose to be efficacy products to help cure people not kill them from laced up Tylenol, seriously?! This is a major failure and a rip off for consumers that trust a name brand that has been around for so long and that consumers trust for their children to only have to suffer more from due to lack of inspection and quality control. They shouldn’t think that just because they are a big corporate and make money still selling other items that these matters shouldn’t be taken seriously and acted upon to minimize their consumer’s concerns.


    Melenaite Saafi

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  16. Most corporations don't really inspect their products anymore before they are sold to the public. They're more worried about how much they can make in a small amount of time that they try to eliminate as many steps in between as they can. They tend to overcharge on their products and try to make everyone believe that the generic brand won't have the same amount of dosage. When in reality, the generic brand is lacking the "moldy" smell of the bottles and the little pieces of metal in them. I have always bought the generic brand of whatever medication I need because I don't really see the difference of taking a name branded med compared to the generic brand. Either way, the medication does it's job.

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  17. You would think that Johnson & Johnson would have taken more steps to ensure the quality of its products so they wouldn’t be faced with the same predicament that happened in 1982. There was a huge backlash for the problem with cyanide found in Tylenol. It took them a while to recover, yet they did. Now they have to deal with more quality problems that could have been prevented had the company had the correct controls in place. This is an operations problem that should have been prevented. Had management correctly implemented quality controls then defective products would not have shown up on the shelves of drug stores and grocery stores for the consumer to buy. I would consider this an occupational or corporate crime, because it was the corporation as a whole that produced the defective product.

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  18. Well it looks like the “Bottom line” has replaced the credo at Johnson and Johnson. Loose a customer for bad service or product and that one turns to 50 in a matter of moments. This is a fact of human nature, an angered person is more likely to get on a soap box and get the word out on something bad before proclaiming a product’s worthiness. Nobody likes to feel like they have been doped, paying premium prices for a generic product. McNeil’s recall of their most used over the counter cold and sinus medicines was a wakeup call to the public to not get dependent on what you used to take as a child, do some research and see what the competition has to offer if not the Health Food stores. The rebuilding of the confidence in the Johnson and Johnson name will be a slow process, only because the loyal brand name follower’s generation is hopefully coming out of their complacent coma.

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  19. This Again doesn't surprise me one bit.... Again another story in the pathological pursuit for profit.... The inability for a company like Johnson & Johnson to put some of the substantial profits they make back into their facilities for safety, quality control, and overall continue the namesake of their brand is why people will no longer buy from them. The lose of customers shouldn't be of any surprise to them either... Although people will still continue to buy their products which are actually overpriced to begin with this little mishap will only end up being a slap on the wrist as in most cases with Large Companies!!

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  20. It's disappointing to see that such a large and widely trusted company like Johnson & Johnson can have such problems. Before reading this article, I had not heard of any recalls on products and it's a little frightening to know that I could have taken a defective medicine. I guess that's my fault, but at the same time, Johnson & Johnson makes so many commercials about their products being trustworthy and the best products to choose, and they are not living up to their promises. Because this is a medical product and is monitored by the FDA, I feel like they are much more responsible for delivering their promises, especially with children's medicines. They should definitely get their business together, but I wouldn't be surprised if they lose a lot of customer loyalty after this whole ordeal is over. And they very well deserve that too.

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  21. I remember when I was younger and the “cyanide” incident happened in Chicago. That was a major scare issue. People dropped the products like a hot potatoes. The older generation reverted to old home remedies and started to doubt things involving medicine. That was just the beginning of a long list of product issues. It seems to me that somewhere along the lines the Johnson brothers did someone dirty in the past and having been paying the price for it every since at the expense of their products. There is a nice history of family scandals involving the brothers from adultery to mental issues. It is as if they are doomed to the end because of their past. I believe that some is deliberately sabotaging the pharmaceutical industry.
    I think that the action according to Bonnie Jacobs, a McNeil spokesperson should be followed throughout the entire Johnson and Johnson companies. They should stop regroup, rethink and rebuild, and take their time doing it. Heighten their personnel security as well.

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  22. once again im really not surprised by something like this. when i read this, i just thought, it's another story in the pathological pursuit for profit. these stories are becoming more frequent about different companies or corporations but i think customers will be a little sympathetic to the guys who make "baby oil". this just concretes my habit of always buying the generic brand.

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