POLL: Do corporations have a social responsibility?

[Turkish]

Social responsibility meaning such things as donating to charities (ie. IBM donating to AIDS charities).
Safety responsibility meaning they have to make sure their products are safe to consume/use and will not cause harm to those that do not consume. Think of it like product liability in tort law.

So?

 

[PunDogg]

yeah they at least have some of that

 

[Zenmervolt]

Should they be compelled? No. So it's not a "responsibility" in the true sense. The term "responsibility" implies a "must". You can be fired at work for neglecting your responsibilities.

That said, I think it is basic human decency to take care of the community in which one exists, whether one is an individual or a corporate entity.

ZV

 

[jjones]

Social responsibility for things such as donations? No.

Social responsibility for things such as environmental issues, community relations, fair labor practices, etc.? Yes.

 

[Ness]

They have safety responsibilities.

Social responsibilites are different. A community will not help their business grow if they don't help though. Also, many companies donate large sums of money to charity because they get big tax breaks and bigger press out of it.

 

[saxophonoia]

Originally posted by: jjones
Social responsibility for things such as donations? No.

Social responsibility for things such as environmental issues, community relations, fair labor practices, etc.? Yes.

 

[GTaudiophile]

I don't think they do here, but such social responsibility is mandated by law in Germany.

 

[Gurck]

Safety, absolutely. Social is iffy... It thoroughly disgusts me when a scuzzy company does scuzzy things in the name of increasing profit margins by even a fraction of a percent (like Sony), but is it wrong? Tough question, but yeah I think it is. I try to avoid buying from companies whose ethics I don't approve of, but this is often not possible or feasible.

 

[Reliant]

Originally posted by: jjones
Social responsibility for things such as donations? No.

Social responsibility for things such as environmental issues, community relations, fair labor practices, etc.? Yes.

Yep.