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WHAT IS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY?
I like to introduce this chapter topic by bringing in current stories about companies being socially responsible and being socially irresponsible. I ask my students what they think about what these companies are doing. Help students understand why these types of issues draw so much attention.
Q&A 5.1 Why are social responsibility issues drawing so much attention these days?
(Organizational managers, especially managers in for-profit business organizations, and their social responsibility or lack of social responsibility do seem to be a favorite target of the news media, don’t they? Why is this? The main reason is that business organizations play an important role in our society. These organizations control vast amounts of resources and provide the multitude of goods and services that society desires. So we look at what these organizations do-the good, the bad, and the ugly. We ask, are they being socially responsible and can they improve their contributions to society. When we feel these organizations are not being responsible, we want to know why and what they’re going to do about it. Fortunately, we don’t always dwell on the negatives. When organizations are doing good things for society, we also applaud and commend them. For instance, you may have heard or read about Aaron Feuerstein’s fabric mill in Malden, Massachusetts. When it burned to the ground, his decision to continue paying his employees until the mill was rebuilt made him into an overnight celebrity because of his ethical and socially responsible action. [If you want more information, do a Web search for the story.])
WHAT IS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY? ARGUMENTS FOR AND AGAINST< ...