HR Industry News

Employees expect social responsibility from their employers

— 26 November 2007 —

Employees expect their businesses to adopt a responsible, ethical approach, according to a new report published by recruitment company Robert Half and the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Employee power is the “driving force” behind the corporate responsibility agenda in the UK, says the report. The study found that:

Employees may not necessarily be familiar with the term Corporate & Social Responsibility, but they are often the driving force behind company re-cycling schemes, they understand the importance of giving something back to their community through charity work, and they want to be proud of the companies they work for. It’s this ‘call to action’ from employees that is making employers sit up and take notice.

Alexis Fox-Mills, Head of Innovation, Ceridian

• Employees expect the business that they work for to adopt a like-minded approach to the environment, community welfare, sustainability, employee diversity and work/life balance.
• Younger employees are more concerned with their employer’s corporate responsibility activities than ever before.
• Senior managers agreed that staff often drive the corporate social responsibility programme ‘from the ground up’, particularly within SMEs.
• Organisations have responded to corporate social responsibility demands as a way to retain good people and foster a positive culture.

The findings highlight the need for businesses to develop CSR agendas in order to attract and retain talented employees, and also suggested that CSR was directly linked to shareholder value.

Senior managers who participated in the roundtable discussions that led to the report all agreed that investing in ethical practises and environmentally friendly policies created shareholder value.

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