Debates concerning the roles and purposes of corporations within society are longstanding. Some scholars and practitioners view shareholder returns as the primary or sole driver of company board and executive decisions. Others adopt a broader perspective because companies necessarily rely on, interact with, and impact other stakeholders such as employees, customers, and the broader community.
Corporate models that prioritise and encompass these broader stakeholder harms and impacts are referred to as, and reflected within, “corporate social responsibility” or “corporate sustainability” frameworks. When operating well, these frameworks require companies to publicly acknowledge and mitigate the societal harms caused by their activities. These models recognise that corporations are a legal creation, exist because of policy concessions, and require long term community support to continue to operate successfully.
Asbestos is a classic case study of the ability of companies to benefit from short-term profits, while socialising most of the longer-term harms.
This show, using information from Asbestos Awareness Australia, considers the continuing harms and externalities generated by the prior activities of James Hardie and CSR against the stated corporate sustainability and social license objectives and achievements of these publicly listed companies. We show that “words and figures differ”.
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