Abstract
The political shift toward an economic liberalism in many developed market economies, emphasizing the importance of the marketplace rather than government intervention in the economy and society (Dorman, Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development, 2000; Tombs, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety 3(1):24–25, 2005; Walters, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety 03(2):3–19, 2005), featured a prominent discourse centered on the need for business flexibility and competitiveness in a global economy (Dorman, 2000; Tombs, 2005). Alongside these developments was an increasing pressure for corporate social responsibility (CSR). The business case for CSR – that corporations would benefit from voluntarily being socially responsible – was increasingly promoted by governments and corporations as part of the justification for self-regulation. The aim of the article is to examine more closely the proposition that self-regulation is effective, with particular reference to the business case for workplace equality and safety. Based on a comprehensive literature review and documentary analysis, it was found that current predominant management discourse and practice focusing on diversity and safety management systems (OHSMS) resonate well with a government and corporate preference for the business case and self-regulation. However, the centrality of individual rather than organizational factors in diversity and OHSMS means that systemic discrimination and inherent workplace hazards are downplayed, making it less likely that employers will initiate structural remedies needed for real change. Thus, reliance on the business case in the argument for self-regulation is problematic. In terms of government policy and management practice, the business case needs to be supplemented by strong, proactive legislation, and worker involvement.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Abbreviations
- AS/NZS:
-
Australian/New Zealand Standard
- AWCBC:
-
Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada
- BSI:
-
British Standards Institute
- CSA:
-
Canadian Standards Association
- CSR:
-
Corporate Social Responsibility
- IAPA:
-
Industrial Accident Prevention Association
- ILO:
-
International Labour Organization
- NL:
-
Newfoundland and Labrador
- OHS:
-
Occupational Health and Safety
- OHSMS:
-
Occupational Health and Safety Management System
- PSAC:
-
Public Service Alliance of Canada
- RTW:
-
Return to Work
- WHSCC:
-
Workplace Health and Safety Compensation Commission
References
Aalders, M. and T. Wilthagen: 1997, ‘Moving Beyond Command-and-Control: Reflexivity in the Regulation of Occupational Safety and Health and the Environment’, Law and Policy, 19 (4), 415–443.
Agocs, C. and C. Burr: 1996, ‘Employment Equity, Affirmative Action and Managing Diversity: Assessing the Differences’, International Journal of Manpower 17 (4/5), 30–45.
Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC): 2006, National Work Injury/Disease and Fatality Statistics Program, http://www.awcbc.org/english/NWISPstats.asp. Accessed 1 Aug 2007
Australian/New Zealand Standard (AS/NZS): 2001, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems – Specification with Guidelines for Use. AS/NZS 4801:2001 Council of Standards Australia and Council of Standards New Zealand, International Standards, www.saiglobal.com/shop. Accessed 1 Nov 2006
Bakan, A. and A. Kobayashi: 2000, ‘Affirmative Action and Employment Equity: Policy, Ideology and Backlash in the Canadian Context’, Studies in Political Economy: A Socialist Review 79, 145–166.
Bewley, H. and S.Fernie: 2003, ‘What do Unions do for Women?’, in H. Gospel and S. Wood, (eds.), Representing Workers: Trade union Recognition and Membership in Britain, (Routledge, London).
Bluff, L., Gunningham, N. and R. Johnstone: 2004, ‘Introduction: The Changing World of Work and Implications for OHS Regulation’, in L. Bluff, N. Gunningham and R. Johnstone (eds.), OHS Regulation for a changing World of Work (Federation Press, Sydney, Australia).
Bohle, P. and M. Quinlan: 2000, Managing Occupational Health and Safety: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 2nd edition (MacMillan Publishers Australia, University of New South Wales).
British Standards Institute (BSI): 2004, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems Guidance Standard. 8800: 2004 BSI Management Systems, Standards and Publications, http://orders.ceem.com/index.asp. Accessed 1 Nov 2006
Brooks, D. and L. Davis: 1996, ‘Work-related Injuries to Massachusetts Teens, 1987–1990’, American Journal of Industrial Medicine 29, 153–60.
Canada: 1985, Royal Commission of the Ocean Ranger Marine Disaster, Volume 2. Ottawa
Canada: 1986, Employment Equity Act, 1986. Revised in 1996. Ottawa
Canada: 2006, Advantage Canada: Building a Strong Economy for Canadian. Department of Finance, http://www.fin.gc.ca/ec2006/plan/pc5e.html. Accessed 2 Nov 2007
Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador: 2003, Discussion Paper Amending the Accord Acts to Incorporate Occupational Safety and Health. Number 0123456789, Ottawa
Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia: 2002, Proposed Amendments to the Accord Acts to Incorporate an Offshore Occupational Health and Safety Regime. Ottawa
Canadian Human Rights Commission: 2009, Preventing Discrimination, Tools and Resources: Undue Hardship, Government of Canada, http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca/preventing_discrimination/page3-en.asp. Accessed 1 Feb 2009
Canadian Institute: 1992, Superconference: Managing Workforce Diversity. Conference Prospectus, Toronto, 9–10 March
Canadian Standards Association (CSA): 2006, Occupational Health and Safety Management. CSA Standard Z1000-06 Online Store at www.ShopCSA.ca. Accessed 1 Nov 2006
Copeland, L.: 1988, ‘Valuing Diversity, Part 1: Making the Most of Cultural Differences at the Workplace’, Personnel, June, 52–60
Council of Atlantic Premiers, 2007: Atlantic Provinces Work to Reduce Regulations for Business. Press Release April 16, http://www.fin.gc.ca/no6/06-069-eng.asp. Accessed 1 Feb 2009
Cragg, W.: 2005, Ethics Codes, Corporations and the Challenge of Globalization, (Edward Elgar: Cheltenham, U.K.).
Dickens, L.: 1994, ‘The Business Case for Women’s Equality: Is the Carrot Better than the Stick?, Employee Relations 16(8), 5–18.
Dickens, L.: 1999, ‘Beyond the Business Case: A Three-pronged Approach to Equality Action’, Human Resource Management Journal 9(1), 9-19.
Dorman, P.: 2000, ‘If Safety Pays, Why Don’t Employers Invest in it?’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International development (Pergamon, Amsterdam), pp. 351–365.
Equal Pay Coalition: 2007, Pay Equity Enforcement, http://equalpaycoalition.org/enforcement.php. Accessed 11 Oct 2007
Frenette, M.: 2007, Rising Education of Women and the Gender Earnings Gap. Business and Labour Market Analysis, Statistics Canada, http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/o70612/d070612b.htm. Accessed 12 June 2007
Frick, K., Jensen, P., Quinlan, M. and T. Wilthagen: 2000, ‘Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: An Introduction to a New Strategy for Occupational Safety, Health and Well-being’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development (Pergamon, Amsterdam), pp. 1–14.
Frick, K. and J. Wren: 2000. ‘Reviewing Occupational Health and Safety Management – Multiple Roots, Diverse Perspectives and Ambiguous Outcomes’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development (Pergamon, Amsterdam), 17–42.
Gallagher, C., E. Underhill and M. Rimmer: 2001, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems: A Review of their Effectiveness in Securing a Healthy and Safe Workplace. Report Prepared for the National Occupational Health and Safety Commission (NOHSC), Sydney, Australia
Gomez-Mejia, L., Balkin, D., Cardy, R., Dimick, D. and A. Templar: 2003, Managing Human Resources, 3rd Edition, (Pearson Prentice Hall, Toronto), pp. 101–129.
Griffin, J. and J. Mahon: 1997, ‘The Corporate Social Performance and Corporate Financial Performance Debate: Twenty-five Years of Incomparable Research’, Business and Society 36(1), 5–31.
Harcourt, M. and S. Harcourt: 2000, ‘When Can an Employee Refuse Unsafe Work and Expect to be Protected from Discipline? Evidence from Canada’, Industrial and Labour Relations Review 53(4), 684–703.
Hart, S.: 2002, ‘Unions and Pay Equity Bargaining in Canada’, Relations Industrielles/Industrial Relations 57(4), 609–627.
Hart, S.: 2002, ‘Norwegian Workforce Involvement in Safety Offshore: Regulatory Framework and Participants’ Perspectives’, Employee Relations 24(5), 486–499.
Hart, S.: 2006, ‘Worker Participation in Health and Safety in the Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Oil Industry: A Comparison of Current and Proposed Legislation’, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety 04(2), 25–41.
Hopkins, A.: 2000, Lessons from Longford: The Esso Gas Plant Explosion, (CCH Australia, New South Wales).
Husted, B. and J. Salazar: 2006, ‘Taking Friedman Seriously: Maximizing Profits and Social Performance’, Journal of Management Studies 43(1), 75–91.
International Labour Office (ILO): 2007, Laboursta, http://laboursta.ilo.org/. Accessed 1 Aug 2007
Kainer, J.: 1998, ‘Pay Equity and Part-time Work: an Analysis of Pay Equity Negotiations in Ontario Supermarkets’, Canadian Women’s Studies 18(1), 47–51.
Kamp, A. and K. Blansch: 2000, ‘Integrating Management of OHS and the Environment: Participation, Prevention and Control’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development (Pergamon, Amsterdam), pp. 413-436.
Keith, N.: 2004, Workplace Health and Safety Crimes (LexisNexis, Markham)
Lockett, A., Moon, J. and W. Visser: 2006, ‘Corporate Social Responsibility in Management Research: Focus, Nature, Salience and Sources of Influence’, Journal of Management Studies 43(1), 116–136.
McWilliams, A., Siegel, D. and P. Wright: 2006, ‘Corporate Social Responsibility; Strategic Implications’, Journal of Management Studies 43(1), 1–18.
Mighty, E.: 1991, ‘Valuing Workforce Diversity: A Model of Organizational Change’, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences 8(2), 64–71.
Murray, J.: 2004, Corporate Social Responsibility: An Overview of Principles and Practices. Working Paper No. 34, Policy Integration Department, World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization, International Labour Office, Geneva
Nichols, T. and E. Tucker: 2000, ‘OHS Management Systems in the UK and Ontario, Canada: A Political Economy Perspective’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development, (Pergamon, Amsterdam), pp. 285–309.
Oil Industry Liaison Committee (OILC): 2006, Reprint of oil and gas industry publication Upstream articles, in Blowout 75 (November), 13–28
Ontario: 1987, Pay Equity Act, 1987. Statutes of Ontario, Chapters 32 and 34, Toronto
Ontario: 1993, Employment Equity Act, 1993. Statutes of Ontario, Toronto
Orlitzky, M., F. Schmidt and S.Rynes: 2003, ‘Corporate Social and Financial Performance: A Meta-analysis’, Organization Studies, 24(3), 403–441.
Panopolous, G. and R. Booth: 2007, ‘An Analysis of the Business Case for Safety: The Costs of Safety-related Failures and the Costs of their Prevention’, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety, 5(1), 61–73.
Prasad, P.: 2005, Crafting Qualitative Research: Working in the Postpositivist Tradition, (M. E. Sharpe, New York).
Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC): 2003, Pay Equity: Archives of the PSAC Treasury Board Pay Equity Case, http://www.psac.com/what/payequity/archive-e.shtml. Accessed 10 Nov 2007
PSAC: 2007, Pay Equity: What’s New?, http://www.psac.com/what/payequity/pay-e.cfm. Accessed 10 Nov 2007
PSAC: 2009, PSAC to Challenge Harper Government’s Attack on Workers’ and Women’s Rights. Accessed 26 May 2009
Rae, C.: 2007 (May), Leadership Forum 2007. Presentation at Minerva Summer Institute, IAPA, Toronto
Richard, J. P.: 1997, The Westray Story: A Predictable Path to Disaster. Report of the Westray Mine Public Inquiry, 1–2
Robens, Lord: 1972, Report of the Committee on Safety and Health at Work, HMSO, London.
Rubery, J. and C. Fagan: 1995, ‘Comparative Industrial Relations: Towards Reversing the Gender Bias’, British Journal of Industrial Relations, 33(2), 210–235.
Ruby, M.: 2006, ‘In Living Colour: How Canadian Employers Benefit from Making their Workplaces more Diverse’, Workplace News, 12(3), 16–19.
Sen, S. and C. Bhattacharya: 2001, ‘Does Doing Good Always Lead to Doing Better? Consumer Reactions to Corporate Social Responsibility’, Journal of Marketing Research, 38(May), 225–243.
Shields, J. and H. Dickinson: 1994, ‘Health for Sale: The Political Economy of Occupational Health and Safety’, in B. Bolaria and H. Dickinson (eds.), Health, Illness and Healthcare in Canada, (Harcourt Brace, Toronto).
Silverman, D.: 2000, Doing Qualitative Research: A Practical Handbook. (Sage Publications, London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi).
Smith, N.: 2003, ‘Corporate Social Responsibility: Whether or How?’, California Management Review, 45(4), 52–76.
Statistics Canada: 2006, The Canadian Labour Market at a Glance 2005, Minister of Industry, http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=71-222-X, plus catalogue nos. 75-001-XIE (2001), 71-587-XIE (2005), 75-001-XIE (2006). Accessed 16 Oct 2007
The Best Fifty Corporate Citizens: 2007, Corporate Knights: The Canadian Magazine for Responsible Business, 6(1), 24–25
Tombs, S.: 2005, ‘Regulating Safety at Work’, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety, 3(1), 5–16.
United Steelworkers of America (USWA): 2004, Justice Must be Done for Baie Verte Miners, Press Release 18 June, http://www.uswa.ca/program/content/1500.php. Accessed 1 Nov 2007
Vogel, D.: 2005, The Market for Virtue: The Potential and Limits of Corporate Social Responsibility, (Brookings Institution Press, Washington, D.C.).
Waddock, S. and S. Graves: 1997, ‘The Corporate Social Performance–Financial Performance Link’, Strategic Management Journal, 18(4), 304–319.
Walsh, P.: 2007, Court Upholds Cancer Claim against IOC: Former Truck Driver Wins Workers’ Compensation Coverage for His Treatment, The Telegram, 30 Oct, A1-2
Walters, D.: 2003, Workplace Arrangements for OHS in the 21st Century. The Australian Occupational Health and Safety Regulation for the 21st Century Conference, National Occupational Health and Safety Commission, Gold Coast, Australia
Walters, D.: 2005, ‘The Challenge of Change for Strategies on Health and Safety at Work in the 21st Century’, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety 03(2), 3–19.
Watson, R. and The Core Writing Team (eds.): 2001, Third Assessment Report: Climate Change 2001. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Geneva, Switzerland
WHSCC – PRIME, http://www.whscc.nf.ca/prime. Accessed 23 Oct 2007
Wokutch, R. and C. VanSandt: 2000, ‘OHS in the United States and Japan: The DuPont and the Toyota Models’, in K. Frick, P. Jensen, M. Quinlan, and T. Wilthagen (eds.), Systematic Occupational Health and Safety Management: Perspectives on an International Development, (Pergamon, Amsterdam), pp. 285–309.
Workplace Health and Safety Compensation Commission (WHSCC): 2007, 30 Business Leaders Sign Inaugural CEO Leadership Charter. News and Events – Media Releases, May 22
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hart, S.M. Self-regulation, Corporate Social Responsibility, and the Business Case: Do they Work in Achieving Workplace Equality and Safety?. J Bus Ethics 92, 585–600 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0174-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0174-1