Immanuel Kant was generally regarded as the last major philosopher of the early modern period and one

of history's most influential thinkers. His ethical theories were presented in two works. The Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals (1785) was Kant's "search for and establishment of the supreme principle of morality." In The Critique of Practical Reason (1787) Kant attempted to unify his account of practical reason with his work in theCritique of Pure Reason. Kant was the major proponent in history of what is called deontological ethics. Deontology is the study of duty. On Kant's view, the sole feature that gives an action moral worth is not the outcome that is achieved by the action, but the motive that is behind the action. The Categorical Imperative was the name of Kants moral law and the famous statement of this duty: "Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law." (McCormick, 2006). Kants notion on moral judgment i.e. the ability to personally determine the motive behind and outcome of ones action, made freedom play a significant role in much of his ethical theories. According to Kant what makes human beings different from inanimate things and other lower level living beings is that people have dignity based on their ability to choose freely what they will do with their lives, and they have a fundamental moral right to respect other peoples choices as well. It is a violation of human dignity to manipulate people or use them in ways against their will and choice. There are four different aspects of the basic right which are to be taken into consideration as people choose: the right to told the truth and to be informed about matters that significantly affect choices; right of privacy or the freedom to do, believe, and say whatever a person chooses in his/her personal life so long as he/she does not violate the rights of others; right not to be injured or harmed unless a person freely and knowingly does something to deserve punishment or chooses to risk such injuries; and right to what is agreed and promised by those with whom a person has freely entered into a contract or agreement with. Kant claimed that actions are wrong to the extent that they violate the rights of individuals. The wrongfulness of the action is determined by the seriousness of the violation it creates (Velazquez, Andre, Tomas Shanks and Meyer, 1996). Kants ethical theories revolve around personal duty to make ones actions produce a moral value and respect for other people. In the business and stakeholders context, Kants principle of respect for persons asserts that every human being is entitled to be treated not merely as a means to the achievement of the efforts of others, but as a being valuable in his or her own right; that each person is entitled to be respected as an end in himself or herself. The principle of respect for other people recognizes that a person is an autonomous moral agent who has his or her own desires and the free will to act upon the fulfillment of those desires. No person has the right to demean another persons desires or rob him or her off his/her freedom to enjoy the fruition of those desires. Thus, principle of respect for other people necessitates respect for others' autonomy. This principle of respect for other people maintains that the world of business is bound to respect individual persons within the corporate community. Businesses may not treat their employees, stakeholders, customers and other people that make up the business, merely as means to the business's ends, but must recognize that as moral agents, all these people are entitled to agree to and choose to participate or not participate in the decisions regarding the business. Accordingly, the management of a business organization is obliged to give equal consideration to the interests of all employees, stakeholders, customers etc. in developing business policy and to manage the business so as to optimize the balance among these interests (Hasnas, 2001).