In the recent past, organizations have increased their attention on corporate social responsibility (CSR). This follows numerous transformations in the contemporary society, such as globalization and technological differentiation. Therefore, as an ethical practice as well as a marketing strategy, companies are increasingly incorporating CSR in their business plans (Hopkins, 2007; Lee, 2008).
Research indicates that CSR relates to the manner in which firms work responsibly in an attempt to enhance attainment of their objectives, by meeting their stakeholders' demands (Banerjee, 2008; Dahlsrud, 2008). These stakeholders include employees and their families, customers, shareholders, government and the general public (Crane, Matten, and Spence, 2008). Nevertheless, the principal idea behind CSR is the utilization of the firm's profits through management of environmental, economic and social factors, in order to minimize their impact in the larger society (Dahlsrud, 2008). In this regard, this report seeks to discuss critically, who is to blame for the Bangladesh factory collapse on April 2013, at the Rana Plaza, which resulted to the death of more than 1129 individuals, with respect to CSR principles.
[...] According to Scott director at Worker Rights Consortium, western multinational companies pressure Bangladesh garments factories to supply products continuously, yet pay poorly (Durkin, 2013). As such, the garment factories in Bangladesh do not have enough funds to renovate or repair their factories in an attempt to enhance their employees' safety (Anam, 2013). Suppliers are among the principal external stakeholders of organizations, which mean that they are included in CSR (Balmer, Fukukawa, and Gray, 2007; Belal, and Cooper, 2011). Additionally, owing to the numerous complaints on working environments that employees are exposed in developing countries, most developed countries have set rules that multinationals accessing products from developing countries must have a suppliers' code of ethics (Spence, and Bourlakis, 2009). [...]
[...] Stringent Adherence to Suppliers Code of Conduct Customers of the collapsed factory were also blamed for placing enormous pressure on the factory to provide products (Durkin, 2013). As such, these customers' did not care to consider whether the factory was implementing its suppliers' code of conduct, which stipulate that suppliers must give their staffs a safe working conditions and environments. Therefore, multinationals must be in the frontline to ensure implementation of their suppliers standards by their suppliers' (Davies, and Aston, 2010). Conclusion This report analyzed the Bangladesh factory collapse incident, which took place on April 2013, and led to the death of 1129 individuals. [...]
[...] The owner of the building signs a contract that he/she will adhere to the regulations stipulated in the BNBC 2014). Unfortunately, Dhaka local authority, as well as the national government issued a go-ahead warranty for construction of the building prior to conducting adequate investigation. According to the Vice- Chancellor University of Asia Pacific, Professor Jamilur Reza Choudhury, Rana Plaza incident was not an issue related to lack of awareness of the set rules and regulations in the BNBC. Rather it is the ignorance of the building owners to adhere to the rules, “since rules are for fools, and money talks, are the guiding principles, in Bangladesh” (Anam, 2013). [...]
[...] The construction company ignored its moral obligation towards the public, as well as the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) (Naeem and Welford, 2009). BNBC clearly stipulates that; it is the responsibility of engineers and architects to ensure that all rules and regulations concerning construction of quality buildings are adhered and implemented 2014). This illustrates that, through the BNBC, the construction company needed to illustrate its moral obligation towards the society, through the use of appropriate construction materials, as well as by offering Sohel Rana advice regarding the best place to construct his building. [...]
[...] Basu, K., and Palazzo, G Corporate social responsibility: A process model of sense making. Academy of Management Review, 122-136. Belal, A. R., and Cooper, S The absence of corporate social responsibility reporting in Bangladesh. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 654-667. Carroll, A. B., and Shabana, K. M The business case for corporate social responsibility: a review of concepts, research and practice. International Journal of Management Reviews, 85-105. Collier, J., and Esteban, R Corporate social responsibility and employee commitment. [...]
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