Sourcing Seattle

Corporate Social Responsibility and Earth Day

Yesterday was Earth Day and as I sent an email to my company in observation of being environmentally conscious, I was reminded of a topic that is becoming increasing to the forefront of human resources management - Corporate Social Responsibility.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR, also called corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, and responsible business) is a concept whereby organizations consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders, as well as the environment.

Over a third of US workers would be more inclined to work for companies with strong green credentials, according to a major new survey highlighting the growing influence environmental issues are exerting over staff recruitment and retention policies.

The survey of more than 2,200 adults carried out by market research firm Harris Interactive found that 36 per cent would be more inclined to work for a “green” company, while 59 per cent believe their current employer should be doing more improve its environmental performance.

Tig Gilliam, chief executive at HR consultancy, Adecco Group North America, which commissioned the research, said that the study confirmed that job seekers are increasingly looking into firms’ environmental policies when looking for a job. “Similar to investigating a company’s financial performance and work/life programs, we’re seeing more and more candidates doing their homework and looking closely to determine the reality behind a company’s claims of environmental friendliness,” he said.

The report also found that younger employees are the most likely to want to work for firms with strong green credentials, suggesting that the issue will grow in importance as the baby boomer generation begins to retire. More than two thirds of Generation Y workers, typically characterised as people born after 1980, said they wanted their employer to be environmentally friendly compared to just 52 per cent of baby boomers.

Moreover, firms that adopt strong green policies could find that it saves them money when looking to recruit younger staff.

Almost a third of respondents said that they would be willing to sacrifice a portion of their salary to work for an environmentally friendly firm with Generation Y workers saying they would sacrifice, on average, 6.2 per cent of their wages. In contrast, environmentally conscious baby boomers would be willing to sacrifice just 2.5 per cent.

In light of these statistics and Earth Day here are some tips to be more green:

• Start a Writing Pad Program. Drop your one-sided printouts when you are done with them in the box and create notepads from the paper for use in the office.

• Buy recycled paper to use for the vast majority of your everyday printing needs.

• Carpool as often as possible. Set a goal of commuting with fellow workers in a car pool or using mass transit at least one a week.

• Bring lunch in reusable/washable containers. Set a goal of having at least one waste-free lunch.

• Drink beverages from a reusable, washable mug or even reuse your plastic bottles. Americans send about 38 billion water bottles a year to landfills. Considering the 1.5 million barrels of oil needed to make those bottles, the environmental impact of plastic bottle waste is truly staggering.

• Buy and use products made from recycled materials. Use e-mail instead of paper copies whenever possible. Use double sided photocopying or printing if you can

• Participate in your company’s recycling program. If they don’t have one, create one.

• Keep track of things you have thrown away at work each day and think of ways to prevent waste.

• Use reusable bags whenever you can, neither plastic or paper bags are good choices.

• Turn off the lights when you leave!

Being environmentally conscious aids in retention, recruiting, and even brand distinction. In a job market like Seattle, it will be costly not to be socially responsible.

Dan Hall

Seattle Human Resources Manager