Citizenship, accountability and community: the limits of the CSR agenda

Abstract

The focus of this article on the relationship between companies and local communities derives from a concern that many accounts of corporate responsibility and citizenship overlook this relationship—in particular, relations with poorer communities—as part of a general neglect of the developmental implications of the CSR agenda. Communities are engaging with corporations more routinely now than previously, a trend fostered by the lowering of barriers to trade through global trade accords, attempts to strengthen the rights of foreign investors and broader processes of national liberalization across many parts of the developing world. Increasingly they do so in ways that assume global significance because of new forms of global organizing and the influence of media and telecommunications, which expose companies’ activities to greater scrutiny, as well as the nature of the claims companies themselves now make about their global operations. While there is a long history of firms in the extractive and plantation sectors, being engaged in conflicts and negotiations with communities, these new factors have exposed many more sectors and regions to these political dynamics. It is often assumed that mechanisms for improving the social and environmental conduct of firms, such as codes of conduct, ethical trading initiatives and certification schemes, provide new forms of protection to poorer groups. However, questions are being asked about the extent and effectiveness of such protection, arising from concerns over whether these tools are sufficiently geared towards the needs of the very poorest workers. Similar anxieties attach to the lack of effective international and national regulation of the private sector, and the inaccessibility and underdevelopment of mechanisms of redress and company liability. 1 The purpose of this article is to add some clarity to the discussion about for whom CSR works and under what conditions.