Business - Corporate Accountability - Essay Example

In simple terms, corporate accountability is the ability of individuals affected by a corporation to take charge of the actions of the enterprise. It involves changes in the legal framework of how a company operates within social and environmental parameters. Corporate accountability ensures that the legal framework within which a corporation operates is enforceable. This means that the corporation can be held accountable if it fails to meet the set requirements. It offers legal rights over the relevant stakeholders to seek compensation incase they suffer from the company’s operation (Friends of Earth, 2005).

Corporate accountability ensures corporations operate with the view of minimizing and avoiding social or environmental risk and harm. The concept of corporate accountability has brought various enlightened sectors of the corporate world together. Environmental organizations, trade unions, consumers, human rights and governments have all united behind the concept of corporate accountability (Friends of Earth, 2010). Corporations regularly may exploit weak regulatory systems in poor and developing countries making citizens in such countries vulnerable to corporate human rights abuse.

Corporations also exploit such weak domestic regulatory systems due to the lack of international corporate accountability. . As companies expand internationally, regulation measures have not been put in place to ensure compensation for individuals whose human rights become violated. Large and multinational companies have an obligation to protect human rights within their operations. Corporate accountability provides corporations with an opportunity to have a look at its operations and impact on people as well as the environment (Isaleem, 2010).

This paper will focus on a case study on corporate response of the Shell oil company towards corporate accountability resulting from consumer and political pressure. CASE STUDY: SHELL OIL COMPANY Shell Oil Company is the fifth largest company in the world according to Forbes magazine. It is a global oil and gas company. The company’s registered office is in London while its headquarters are located at The Hague, Netherlands. The company’s primary business involves oil exploration, harvesting, transportation and trade.

In its oil operations, the company has come under severe scrutiny regarding to its role in environmental pollution and human rights abuses in several countries. It has become particularly criticized over the effects of its operations in Africa which has led to several protests against the company. Its operations in the Niger-delta located in Nigeria have resulted to extreme environmental issues (Amnesty International, 2005). Oil spills resulting from old and corroded pipelines has contributed to the death of vegetation, fish and general environmental degradation in the Niger-delta.

This has led to mass protests against Shell by the local population in Niger-delta and particularly Amnesty international. The environmental pollution has also led to calls to