Corporate Social Responsibility Research Articles

Corporate Social Responsibility In The EU Regulation

The paper aims to introduce the milestones in the EU regulation on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in general with a special focus on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). EU regulation is introduced based on EU documents and international and Hungarian literature. The debate about CSR began in the 1990s in Europe and after the turn of the millennium several papers, guidelines, and directives attempt to provide a common approach about it. However, CSR relates mainly to big companies still today, smallerfirms can also implement CSR. Despite that research on SMEs’ CSR started after 2000, EU documents already highlighted from the beginning of the 2000s the importance of smaller companies as well, and in 2002 the European Commission drew up a strategy for SMEs. The paper illustrates not only the papers and SMEs’ role but also provides ideas about the sense of the EU regulation on CSR and collects the reasons why couldit be beneficial to have a debate and approach about CSR at the EU level. The paper also presents some information about how the SMEs’ CSR features comply with interview research among SMEs in Győr, Hungary in 2021–2022. It is possible to believe that learning the European approach may contribute to thinking in a more integrated way about how to behave socially responsibly and how to manage social impact.

CSR dan Kinerja Keuangan Perusahaan Publik Terdaftar di Malaysia

Implementing a corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy is believed to bring financial benefits to businesses while also enhancing their corporate image. However, there are numerous reasons for engaging in CSR activities. It is clear that CSR involvement requires substantial financial and resource investment, which can impact a company's profit margins. Nonetheless, CSR efforts have been shown to boost a company's reputation and present a positive image to stakeholders. Although businesses incur costs, these investments are expected to yield increased profits and strengthen shareholder trust and confidence. This study aims to examine the effect of CSR on the financial performance of selected sectors that contribute to Malaysia's economy. Using a quantitative approach, this research analyzes secondary data collected through Stata 14 SE software, covering the period from 2016 to 2020 for 124 publicly listed Malaysian companies in the construction, industrial products and services, consumer products and services, plantation, and energy sectors. The study reveals that CSR has an insignificant impact on the return on assets (ROA) of these companies. However, the findings also indicate that CSR significantly affects financial performance when measured by net profit margin (NPM) in these sectors.

Internal CSR and the decline of organised labour: a possible elective affinity?

Purpose This paper aims to explore the potential relationship between internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the decline of organised labour in countries of the global North. Given the opposing trends since the late 20th century and the widespread adherence of internationally recognised labour standards in CSR codes, standards, and reporting frameworks, questions arise about the disparity between CSR rhetoric and practice regarding the collective rights of in-house employees. The paper further explores the tendency in CSR scholarship to overlook violations of collective rights for in-house employees in the global North. Design/methodology/approach To examine whether there is an elective affinity between the rise of CSR and the decline of organised labour, the paper uses a discursive institutionalism approach, providing a meta-theoretical analysis of academic literature on internal CSR. A scoping review methodology was used to identify relevant literature and compile it into an empirical corpus for a metatheoretical analysis. The empirical corpus, consisting of 38 articles, was generated through a Google Scholar (GS) search guided by the following questions: (1) What are the dominant conceptual framings of internal CSR? (2) What are the dominant roles and practical aspects of internal CSR? Findings The paper identifies two key disparities in the literature: (1) between rhetoric and practice regarding the collective rights of in-house employees in the global North and (2) between the extensive CSR research on violations of collective rights of value chain workers and the limited attention to in-house employees’ collective rights. The analysis highlights two factors contributing to these disparities: the integration of internal CSR into the corporate managerial toolbox and the distinction in CSR discourse between core labour standards and workplace issues. The analysis shows that internal CSR has an elective affinity with the decline of organised labour. Research limitations/implications While scoping reviews are often standalone studies, this paper used the methodology for its stated purpose. Limitations include the broad span of internal CSR across various academic fields and reliance solely on GS. Measures taken to enhance inclusivity were unlimited review period, refined inclusion criteria and keywords during the selection process and cross-checks of cited articles. Social implications Considering the implications of the decline of organised labour on workers’ collective voice, poverty and the distribution gap in wealth and income, this paper suggests that for CSR to play a significant role in advancing sustainable social justice, scholars and practitioners should look at ways to reduce the disparity between rhetoric and practice regarding employees’ voice and collective rights. Originality/value The paper lays the foundation for a better understanding of the potential links between internal CSR and the decline of organised labour. It addresses a gap in the literature on the interrelations between CSR and organised labour in the global North and proposes root causes of this gap. This contribution enriches the scarce literature exploring the potential elective affinity between CSR and transformations in the global economy and labour markets since the late 1980s. Finally, the paper deepens the understanding of the implications of CSR for employees’ collective rights and voice as well as for organised labour.

Corporate social responsibility on social media: a scoping review of the literature

Purpose The purpose of this study is to generate a better understanding of the nature of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) communication on social media. In fact social media are one of the most effective communication channels in contemporary business settings. Due to their inner characteristics, they should be the ideal channel for communicating CSR topics. Over the last 15 years, a variety of researches discussed the interplay between CSR and social media, resulting in a rather tangled body of knowledge. Design/methodology/approach This study proposes a scoping review of published academic literature at the intersection of these two research bodies (i.e. CSR and social media communication) to shed light on the nature of the communication, strategic challenges and practices, as well as their key factors and impact. Findings To date, academic research related to the nature of CSR on social media is fragmented and blurry. This research sheds light on the challenges of interactive social media communication in CSR and presents an account of key strategies, tactics and possible impacts for these challenging communication practices. Originality/value This research generates a better understanding of the nature of CSR communication on social media, strategic challenges and practices, as well as their key factors and impact. It is the tentative of generating a synthetic account of relevant literature in the field.

Integrating corporate social responsibility with financial outcomes: stock performance of firms hiring US veterans during COVID-19

PurposeWe propose an alternative rationale for why some firms employ veterans, driven not solely by benevolence but also by the prospect of enhanced outcomes. Financially, hiring veterans could correlate with improved stock market performance for the hiring company while aligning with corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Our study centers on the stock market performance of companies hiring veterans. It aims to underscore a lesser-known facet of the veteran employment discourse and its connection to the hiring firm's financial performance.Design/methodology/approachThis paper evaluates the stock market performance of three VETS portfolios (made of companies that hire veterans) compared to the benchmark SPDR S&P 500 ETF. Using a modular approach, we create three VETS passive indices: VETSEW (equal-weighted index), VETSPW (price-weighted index) and VETSVW (value-weighted index). The study analyzes the annual returns, portfolio allocations, risk-adjusted performance metrics and style analysis of the portfolios from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2022.FindingsThe findings indicate that all three VETS portfolios outperformed the benchmark, with higher ending balances and superior risk-adjusted ratios such as the Sharpe and Sortino ratios. Notably, the portfolios demonstrated resilience during challenging periods, including the COVID-19 pandemic, subsequent recovery and an inflationary period.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations include the paper's focus solely on stock returns, suggesting a need for broader financial and management ratios. Moreover, a deeper exploration into how veterans contribute during turbulent times is suggested for further investigation. Although the study touches upon the financial performance of veteran-focused companies during challenging economic times, it does not extensively delve into the specific ways in which veterans add value under such circumstances, presenting an opportunity for further exploration.Practical implicationsFirms that employ veterans amid the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrate favorable risk-adjusted returns, underscoring the potential of veterans as valuable crisis-time assets. Our research further underscores the correlation between veteran hiring and enhanced financial prowess. These insights carry significant policy implications, including CSR initiatives for hiring veterans, skill translation and training and collaboration with veteran organizations.Social implicationsThe paper's findings suggest significant implications: (1) Policymakers could incentivize firms to hire veterans through tax benefits or grants, leveraging their skills for organizational resilience. (2) Collaborative efforts between policymakers and firms can promote responsible hiring, boosting a company's reputation through diversity and inclusion, positively impacting society. (3) Support for skill translation from military to civilian jobs is crucial. Programs certifying skills and tailored education aid veterans' successful transition into the workforce. (4) Collaborations between policymakers, veteran organizations and private sector entities can create networks, job placements and support systems for veterans' employment.Originality/valueNumerous prior studies within the domain of corporate social responsibility have predominantly neglected the contributions veterans offer to businesses and the underlying reasons behind firms' decisions to employ them. Our research uniquely concentrates on the stock market performance of companies that choose to hire veterans.

The demand for reporting environmental sustainability and social responsibility: insight from Saudi Arabia corporate reports

Purpose In countries where disclosing and reporting matters on sustainability are optional, what are the drivers promoting voluntarily disclosing information related to social responsibility and environmental sustainability corporate environmental and social responsibility? Exploring drivers promoting the demand for voluntarily disclosing information related to social responsibility and environmental sustainability in Saudi Arabia, where regulatory and professional bodies have not mandated information on corporate environmental and social responsibility, motivates this study. Design/methodology/approach A total of 48 individuals voluntarily participated in the survey. Findings Findings reveal that creating a better social, ethical and mental image, building a public relations image for the company, improving stakeholder trust in the company, signaling to investors the company’s care for the earth to meet the ethical motivation of stakeholders, enhancing corporate social responsibility awareness and exhibiting surpasses the mere generation of profits, all derive such disclosure. Such disclosure also signifies the firm’s value as well as improves the overall firm’s economic performance. Practical implications Regulatory and professional bodies must issue and adopt reporting models for entities, principally private companies, whether publicly traded or not, of the content. Their reports should aim to inform users and stakeholders about fulfilling the social and environmental responsibilities of entities toward society and its members. Social implications Out of the drivers for the demand, perceptions of elders toward meeting ethical motivation of senior management significantly differ from that of younger. Originality/value Few studies have been attempted on drivers of the demand for reporting environmental sustainability and social responsibility in an environment where such reporting is not mandated. This study offers insight from Saudi Arabian corporate reports.

Environmental collaboration in construction projects: roles of CSR motivations, environmental commitment and team autonomy

PurposeThis study identifies three main CSR motivations (i.e. strategic benefits, altruism and greenwashing) and explores the relationship between CSR motivations and environmental collaboration by considering the mediating role of environmental commitment and the moderating role of team autonomy.Design/methodology/approachThe data collected from 336 respondents in the construction industry, structural equation modeling and bootstrapping were used to test hypotheses.FindingsThe findings show that altruistic CSR enhances environmental collaboration through enhancing environmental commitment, whereas greenwashing CSR damages environmental collaboration through reducing environmental commitment. Although there is no direct association between strategic CSR and environmental collaboration, environmental commitment mediates the effects of strategic CSR on environmental collaboration. Moreover, the positive effect of strategic CSR and altruistic CSR on environment commitment is stronger when team autonomy is stronger, whereas the negative effect of greenwashing CSR on environment commitment is weaker when team autonomy is stronger.Originality/valueThe findings contribute to the understanding of how CSR motivations can act as catalysts for collaborative efforts in addressing environmental issues within construction projects and offer theoretical understanding of team autonomy by illustrating its role in shaping organizational responses to CSR motivations. The findings can provide insights into why and how participating teams can collaborate better on environmental management, enriching the knowledge of environmental management practices in construction projects.

The Perception of Corporate Social Responsibility and Employee Flourishing: Cultural Diversity as an Underlying Mechanism

The Perception of Corporate Social Responsibility and Employee Flourishing: Cultural Diversity as an Underlying Mechanism

Is India on a path to reduce the tobacco industry’s influence in tobacco control? Insights from the Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index (2019–2023)

IntroductionThe tobacco industry (TI), driven by profit motives, consistently conceals health risks through deceptive strategies, notably in countries like India. These tactics create vulnerabilities that hinder effective tobacco control measures and enable the TI to exploit legal gaps. Understanding these TI strategies is essential for policymakers to take appropriate preventive and corrective measures in order to limit tobacco industry interference (TII) in policy-making. The study aims at understanding the trend of TII in India between 2019 and 2023.MethodologyThe secondary data from the Global Tobacco Industry Interference report, consisting of seven major domains of the TII index, viz. policy participation, corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, industry benefits, unnecessary interaction, transparency, conflict of interest, and preventive measures, were retrieved. A composite score was obtained after adding scores of different domains, for each year.ResultsThe findings of the study demonstrated an initial improvement in India’s implementation of WHO FCTC Article 5.3, as evidenced by a decreasing score between 2019 and 2021. However, this trend halted in 2023, with data showing a slight increase in the score. When compared with other Asian countries, India shows marginal improvement in score than Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, and South Korea. Some of the countries in the region, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Brunei, China, and Vietnam experienced a decline in TII.DiscussionThere has been a rise in CSR activities, forms of unnecessary interactions of TII with policymakers, and participation in policy development; however, improvements are observed in providing benefits to the TI, conflict of interest, and preventive measures. In order to fortify the regulatory framework, it is imperative to create awareness among stakeholders on conflict of interest, denormalize corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives by the TI, provision of a watchdog for TII in the country and “whole of government” approach in implementation of FCTC Article 5.3.

Propuesta para desarrollar el turismo y actividades conexas en el área rural (Creación de empresas comunitarias en un enfoque de RSE)

Although there is a law to promote tourism, applying it is difficult due to the current contextual conditions in Bolivia. The objective of the research is to define some regulatory actions that should be developed to encourage the creation of productive community tourism businesses in the area rural, generating incentives for locals. The present work is qualitative descriptive, for this purpose the experiences developed in other countries are compared and based on consultation with experts and inspired by Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a proposal is developed that could respond to the peculiarities of this reality. The proposal establishesthe development of specific tax exemptions and a tax incentive from the use of the Corporate Profits Tax (IUE) in coordination between the community companies created and the communities based on their social control, with a differentiated treatment with external investors and in national parks in addition to a State that assumes different roles than those it has traditionally assumed in recent years.

Gender diversity on corporate boards: international evidence on commitment to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

PurposeCountries globally have implemented policies or regulations promoting greater gender diversity in boardrooms. We investigate whether gender diversity on corporate boards leads to higher Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) commitment through these disclosures.Design/methodology/approachUsing 16,659 firm-year observations across 42 countries for the years 2019 and 2020, we use disclosure data from the Refinitiv database to measure the sample firms’ stated commitment to sustainable development.FindingsOur data provide useful comparative information on the countries, legal jurisdictions and types of SGDs currently being disclosed. Our analyses reveal that gender diverse boards are associated with greater levels of SDG disclosures, with such commitment being more significant when there is more than one woman on the board. We also find that women board members are associated most with the PEOPLE and PLANET groups within the SDGs, and our results are robust to additional analyses and endogeneity concerns.Originality/valueAlthough gender diversity has been examined within a corporate social responsibility and ethical, social and governance lens, this examination needs to be extended to the SDGs, given the latter’s multi-year horizon and involvement from governments, the private sector and a very broad cross-section of the global community. Our results reinforce global calls for increasing gender representation at the highest levels of organisations to meet the expectations of a greater range of stakeholders in terms of SDG commitment.

Leveraging Blockchain and Machine Learning to Promote Child Labor-Free Sustainable Development

Child labor has been on the rise in recent years, which necessitates improved identification and reporting mechanisms. Current labor management systems, which are often manual or paper-based, lack traceability, audit, privacy, security, and trust features. This leads to challenges in detecting and reporting violations, particularly in large or remote areas. The persistence of this issue undermines the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and highlights the important role of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in addressing this challenge. Our paper proposes a solution combining machine learning and blockchain to automate child labor detection and ensure traceable, auditable, private, and secure reporting. Utilizing Decentralized Proxy Re-Encryption (DPRE), Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs), and oracles on the Ethereum blockchain, with decentralized storage, our approach maintains privacy and transparency. We present a child labor detection model using Mask2Former and ResNet-18 Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) to achieve high accuracy and reliability. The model’s performance is evaluated using various metrics, achieving an accuracy rate of 89.45%, a precision score of 0.906, and a recall score of 0.9332. Additionally, we assess smart contracts for cost-efficiency and security, and discuss the solution’s generalizability, challenges, and practical implications. We make the source code of our solution publicly available on GitHub.

The Quality of CSR Disclosure: Effect of Environmental Performance, Slack Resources, and Sensitivity Classification

This study aims to analyze the influence of slack resources, environmental performance, and industry sensitivity on the quality of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure (CSRD) in Energy and Basic Materials sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) during the period 2017 to 2023. Using a quantitative approach and explanatory research design, data was collected from annual reports, sustainability reports, and PROPER ratings from the Ministry of Environment. The results show that slack resources have a positive and significant effect on the quality of CSRD. Companies with higher slack resources tend to have better quality CSR disclosures. Environmental performance also has a positive effect on CSRD quality, where companies that achieve higher PROPER ratings show better CSR reporting. In addition, industry sensitivity has a positive effect on CSRD quality, which suggests that firms in environmentally sensitive industries tend to provide higher quality CSR disclosures to maintain legitimacy and reputation. Control variables Institutional Ownership and Company Size are not able to control the influence of the relationship between Environmental Performance, Slack Resources and Industry Sensitivity on the quality of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure (CSRD). These findings provide empirical evidence on the importance of slack resources, environmental performance, and industry sensitivity in improving the quality of CSRD, and offer valuable insights for corporate management and policy makers.

Edukacja młodzieży z perspektywy idei CSR

Progress in all areas of socio-economic activity depends on the level of education. In contemporary literature, “education” is interpreted in various ways. Many theories, concepts and education systems are proposed. Issues related to education and its key role in promoting the idea of corporate social responsibility are also discussed. The aim of the study is to prove that the currently adopted education system requires modernization towards a dialogic method of teaching applied ethics and CSR.

Colonial Governance in the Mining Sector: Las Bambas’ RSC and the Conflicts with the Communities

ABSTRACT Mining is an essential component of Peru's social metabolism and the main export item in monetary terms. Copper accounts for half of exports, and its demand is expected to increase because of the energy transition. Mining extraction causes permanent and numerous socio-environmental conflicts, particularly affecting indigenous populations whose integrity is at risk. The Chinese mining company MMG owns the Las Bambas mining project and has ongoing conflicts with affected communities. Affected communities are vulnerable to the mining giant and government repression. Despite promises of community participation, the company has failed to deliver. A long process of complaints and protests begins, to which more communities affected by the mining project are joining. Based on an analysis of the mining company's corporate social responsibility, we will show its colonial governance, demonstrating that its corporate social responsibility does not resolve the conflict, but on the contrary, favors the monetary claims of the communities supporting a corporate colonial behavior.

Decarbonizing a supply chain with an unreliable supplier: Implications for profitability and sustainability

The increasing emphasis on corporate social responsibility has led to a growing trend among firms to initiate decarbonization campaigns, aligning their sustainability efforts with profitability objectives. This paper explores the challenge of decarbonizing a supply chain wherein a buyer cooperates with an unreliable supplier that possesses private absorptive capacity and varying degrees of bargaining power. We develop models based on whether the absorptive capacity remains private information and whether the buyer has more bargaining power in determining the profit-maximizing price. Our findings indicate that the buyer may opt to avoid entering into contracts with the supplier for decarbonization if the absorptive capacity ratio falls below certain values. When contracting occurs, decarbonization has the potential to yield a mutually beneficial outcome for firms, customers, and the environment. Nevertheless, the presence of private information has negative implications for customers and the environment because it results in reduced consumer surplus and increased carbon footprint. As the buyer’s bargaining power strengthens, the likelihood of supply chain decarbonization increases, potentially leading to more consumer surplus and less carbon footprint. Finally, we discuss the effects of key model factors from a triple bottom line perspective (i.e., profit, people, and the planet).

The Impact: Employer Brand, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Organizational Reputation in Job Application Intentions

The Impact: Employer Brand, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Organizational Reputation in Job Application Intentions

Diagnostic Study to Evaluate the Degree of Development of the Circular Economy in Chilean Companies through the Application of a 5D Model

Recently, concepts such as sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, and the circular economy have gained considerable prominence, transforming production models and business practices. However, there remains a degree of uncertainty regarding the actual level of adoption of these initiatives by companies. The objective of this study is to assess the level of implementation of the circular economy in Chilean companies using a 5D model, applied through an assessment tool called “5D Circular”. This model analyzes five key business dimensions: finance, customers, internal processes, learning and growth, and conscious integration. The study was carried out on a sample of 90 companies, using a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents a very low level of development and 5 a very high level. The results show that the companies in the sample have achieved a high level of implementation of the circular economy. However, the dimensions of internal processes and conscious integration show a comparatively lower level of development compared to the dimensions of learning and growth and finance, which show a high level of development. It is worth noting that all companies show advanced knowledge and significant application of the circular economy.

Critical Review of Organizational Factors Affecting Employee Well Being in Hotel Industry

Employee well being is very important to encourage positive performance, which in turn will encourage employee behavior. Employee well being is a challenge facing the hotel industry today and the main thing to consider for the hotel industry for b usiness sustainability. As an important industry of service industry, hotel industry has increasingly become an important part of the present stage and the well being of its employees is crucial to the long-term stability and development of the organization Well being research in the service industries, including hospitality, has been growing. Specific studies on well being in the hotel industry in China may contribut e to this trend The well-being of hotel employees in China has been a growing concern in recent years. As the tourism industry continues to boom in the country, hotel employees are facing increasing demands and pressures in their daily work. From this poi nt of view, through sorting out the existing relevant literature and research results, this study seeks insights into organizational factors such as organizational culture, corporate social responsibility, work life balance, high performance work systems t hat may influence employee well being in hotel industry. This research may contribute to the management and organizational studies, provides an opportunity to validate existing organizational behavior and management theories in the context of the hotel ind ustry. The paper may offer insights that can be generalized to other service oriented industries, providing a broader theoretical understanding applicable beyond the hotel sector. This research may enhance employees' work productivity and efficiency, serv ice quality , customer satisfac tion, employee retention rate, reputation and brand value, also may demonstrate corporate social responsibility.

Shaping tomorrow's managers: The influence of university education on economics students' attitudes toward corporate social responsibility and labor unions

AbstractUniversity education significantly shapes individual values and views, influencing future managers' approaches to CSR and labor relations. This study, employing a survey and experimental vignette methodology, examines the impact of university education on economics students' attitudes toward CSR and organized labor. Our results indicate that while overall attitudes toward CSR remained stable, students showed a slight shift toward profit orientation when faced with real‐life managerial scenarios. There was also a decline in support for labor unions over the academic year, possibly due to neoliberal perspectives in teaching. A key finding is the emergence of a profit‐oriented mindset among economics students, reflecting broader managerial considerations. The study underscores the importance of examining how theoretical knowledge translates into practical decision‐making contexts and suggests the need for a nuanced understanding of CSR and labor union attitudes among economics students, thereby contributing to the discussion on higher education's role in shaping future business leaders.