It is election year in America and President Clinton is stressing corporate citizenship. Is this just an election theme or a long term concern?
TAX BREAKS FOR “R CORPS”
US President Bill Clinton hosted an all-day seminar on corporate citizenship in Washington on May 16 for more than 100 business leaders, considering how to achieve growth and profitability in the global market place while acting responsibly. The seminar concentrated on family-friendly workplaces and employer-employee partnerships, with input from companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Kellogg and United Airlines.
The Clinton administration and Labor Secretary, Robert Reich, in particular, are promoting five principles of corporate citizenship, the two covered in the seminar, along with workers’ healthcare and pensions, investment in human capital through skills, and workplace safety. In addition ideas for “R-Corps” are being explored under which responsible corporations would receive tax breaks in return for meeting certain minimum standards. Contact Michaela Meehan, Department of Labor, on 00 1 202 219 6331
AMERICAN GIVING RISES
Charitable giving by leading American companies rose 2.9% in 1995 compared to the year before, slightly ahead of US inflation, the annual survey by The Chronicle of Philanthropy has found. The results are based on a sample of 100 from the top 150 companies. Their donations totalled 61.5 billion but corporate profits over the same period rose by 11.9%. Among other findings:
companies also made in-kind contributions of 6270 million, while 10% of cash donations were to match employee fundraising;
the biggest donor was Exxon, followed by Procter & Gamble, Wal-Mart, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson, AT&T and IBM;
a quarter of companies have cut at least one community affairs staff member over the last few years and some are ‘outsourcing’ administration of donations and employee volunteering programmes.
The outlook is positive, however, as the average increase in 1996 budgets, on data provided by 62 companies, is over 7%. Contact Jennifer Moore, Chronicle of Philanthropy, on 00 1 202 466 1200
CORPORATE CONSCIENCE AWARDS
Seven American and three foreign companies won recognition in the 1996 Corporate Conscience Awards, presented on June 4 by the Council on Economic Priorities. Winning programmes included:
Hewlett-Packard for alternatives to layoffs;
Veillon (Switzerland) for a supplier code to avoid child labour;
Fuji Xerox (Japan) for employee leave of absence on social welfare schemes.
Entries are now being sought for the 1997 awards. Contact Deborah Leipziger, CEP, on 0171 831 9420
TECHNOLOGY COMBATS EXCLUSION
IBM Europe has prepared a new pan-European corporate citizenship policy to target its technology, expertise and finance on tackling social exclusion and creating a ‘learning society’. The initiative was shaped at a seminar attended by 60 representatives from training organisations, governments and academic institutions from across Europe which met in Salzburg on June 17-18. IBM Europe now intends to fund pilot initiatives, offering opportunities for not-for-profit training providers to work with public and private sectors at a transnational level. Contact Celia Moore, IBM, on 0171 202 3187
INCLUDING EUROPEAN COMPANIES
The European Business Network for Social Cohesion held an open meeting in London on June 28 with presentations from Philips International, Shell Sweden, EDF/Gaz de France, Midland Bank, BP and BT. The Network is funded by the European Commission and the private sector to encourage business action on projects promoting social and economic cohesion, in line with the European Declaration of Businesses against Exclusion. Its first year priorities are identifying and publicising best practice and developing partnerships. The project steering group is chaired by Alan Christie of Levi Strauss and the UK partner agency is LEntA. Contact Jan Noterdaeme, EBN, on 00 32 2 549 0301
BUSINESS LEADERS FORUM
A group of 100 representatives from business, government and not-for-profit agencies in central and eastern Europe met in Budapest on June 25 to review progress on tackling social and environmental problems. Organised by the Prince of Wales Business Leaders Forum, all participants had been on the Learning from Experience Programme of exchange study visits and workshops. A formal survey of their views showed general confidence in most countries about likely economic progress, but widespread pessimism about social breakdown.
Meanwhile in Japan young business leaders met in Tokyo on July 12 to consider how companies can assist social projects in the developing world. The seminar was part of an on-going initiative by PWBLF through a Young Leaders Circle. Contact James Newsome on 0171 467 3600
CHEQUE FOR CHILDREN
Customers of ITT Sheraton hotels in Europe have donated ?250,000 over six months by adding an optional ?1 or equivalent per guest onto their bills for the international children’s charity, UNICEF. The money was handed over on June 24 and the scheme, Check Out for Children, is now being extending to the hotel’s Asia Pacific division. Contact Victoria Rae, UNICEF, on 0171 405 5592
EUROPEAN FOUNDATIONS
Microsoft Europe, the Soros Foundation (Latvia) and a new Spanish business and society foundation, Fundaci¢ Empresa y Sociedad, have recently joined the Brussels-based European Foundation Centre which continues to expand its services to philanthropic and corporate donors. The Corporate Citizenship Europe project held a seminar for Italian companies in Milan on May 23, as part of its initiative to promote new intermediary organisations, working between companies and the community. Contact Tony Glover, CCE, on 0032 2 512 8938
DON’T HURT THE CHILDREN
Individual companies and employer organisations must act immediately to end exploitative, bonded and dangerous forms of child labour and adopt policies to achieve its eventual elimination. Meeting in Geneva on June 3, the International Organisation of Employers, the 120 strong federation of national employer bodies, called for action plans to ensure children and their families benefited and were not hurt by well-intentioned but ill-conceived measures. The IOE will distribute a best practice guide, maintain a database of measures taken and disseminate progress reports.
Meanwhile the International Labour Organisation has estimated that some 20% of primary school aged children – around 128 million – and around 50% at secondary level do not receive education, many of whom are likely to be engaged in economic activity. In a report Child Labour: what is to be done?, published on June 12, the ILO says that where child employment is not proscribed by law, companies should ensure safe working conditions and not prejudice attendance or performance at school. Besides humanitarian concerns, uneducated children will not be economically productive and bad publicity will hinder corporate and brand image. Contact Jean Dejardin, IOE, on 00 41 22 798 1616 and Graciela Carrillo, ILO, on 0171 828 6401
INTERNATIONAL CORRUPTION
The United Kingdom is the least corrupt of the larger European countries, ahead of Germany, France and Italy, but only ranks twelfth in a league table of 54 countries issued by Transparency International at the start of June. Compiled by the University of G”ttingen, it is based on a combination of 10 separate international business surveys. In most western countries bribery of foreign officials is not a criminal offence and bribes are still tax deductible. Contact Transparency International on 00 49 30 787 5908
Comment
The globalisation of commerce poses new challenges for companies and for their corporate social responsibility programmes. Concerns about child labour abuses are just the latest to arise. More and more, companies are tackling community relations at four levels, with common themes between them: locally as neighbours, nationally as corporate citizens, pan-European as partners in growing European union and internationally as the most powerful force for (but often against) sustainable development.
So the debate in the USA is interesting, even if it is not always the case that where America leads, Europe will follow. Both the system and remit of government are very different, not least on welfare provision. Besides, one must beware of anything emerging in election year. Still what Robert Reich is saying finds a strong echo here. (Visit the Department of Labor world-wide web site and read his speech in Los Angeles Town Hall on April 16.)
The implicit social contract, that workers and companies share rising prosperity together and down-turns and lay-offs are temporary, is breaking down. Now rising prosperity is achieved by down-sizing and permanent redundancy, while ‘fat cat’ bosses prosper obscenely. What is needed, he argues, is a new social compact, with a new corporate citizenship, if business is to retain its licence to operate. He might have added an international dimension too: freedom for comapnies to operate globally will be constrained if candidates for election, whether to Washington or Westminster, respond to voter anxieties by playing the foreign card. The bogey is no different, the threat the same, whether the name is Tokyo or Brussels.
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