CSR and Business Ethics

Ethics is the internal moral compass. CSR is the external manifestation of that compass.

The Connection

• A company with strong ethics will naturally engage in CSR.
• However, a company can do CSR without strong ethics (just for PR).

Greenwashing

When a company spends more money advertising their green initiatives than actually doing them.

• Example: An oil company planting 100 trees and spending millions on a TV ad about it, while spilling oil in the ocean. This is Unethical CSR.

Ethical Arguments for CSR

1. Restitution: Corporations use society's resources (roads, educated workforce). CSR is paying back.
2. Iron Law of Responsibility: "In the long run, those who do not use power in a manner which society considers responsible will tend to lose it." (Keith Davis).

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