Supply chain social responsibility in labour- intensive industries: a practitioner’s perspective

Abstract

Social responsibility in labour-intensive industries of developing countries is always a controversial issue among academics and practitioners. Although several studies have conceptualised or empirically examined social responsibility in developing countries, there is limited research that investigates social responsibility issues spanning the entire manufacturing supply chain. Using stakeholder and Resource-Based View (RBV) theory, this study examines the barriers, enablers, motivations, and the current social responsibility facts of the garment and textile industry from knitting suppliers to apparel or garment manufacturer to fashion retailers in the Vietnamese context. The exploratory research design was used through content analysis, panel discussion, and in-depth interview. Our results show that most of the companies have not implemented any significant policies to promote social responsibility but only to adhere to labour law. Since managers realise the crucial social responsibility role in the performance of their operation, merchandisers and intermediaries have a compelling role in improving their social responsibility, and the role of government and NGOs seems to be faded. We also provide the managerial implications and directions for future research.