Coal Mine Ethics - Case Study Example

COAL MINE ETHICS Introduction Human resources have continued to be the most important resourcesthat any company or business organisation should have. Company workers are responsible for setting goals and objectives and creating strategies to be implemented in meeting the objectives. For this reason, any business has the responsibility of taking care of the welfare of workers without which it is destined for failure. Every company or business organisation is expected to lay down procedures and systems that are supposed to be followed when addressing worker’s challenges and problems in the company. At the same time, there has to be mechanisms by which workers are motivated and appreciated in the course of discharging their duties for the success of the company goals and objectives. For this reason, social responsibility, is a mandatory practice for any company practice; this is because, it outlines ways in which the company treats not only its workers but also its customers, management and the community in which it operates Corporate Social Responsibility This is a form of self-regulating mechanism by which business organisation and other corporate institutions are supposed to integrate with their functions. Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR as commonly known defines the manner in which businesses monitor and ensure their active compliance with provisions of good business practice according to the law, industry’s ethical standards as well as international norms as defined by the international Labour Organisation and other recognized agencies (Cragg 2009, p.24). In most cases, the implementation of CSR policy goes beyond the expected levels of compliance, for businesses that operate in such a manner, they go ahead to engage in actions that are aimed at advancing certain levels of social good. These actions are usually for the interest of the business owners, human resources, customers, the community as well as any other stakeholder in particular business operations, and have to be accepted according to the law (Gottschalk, 2011, p.87). The principal goal of CSR in business practice is to create and embrace accountability for commercial activities, besides encouraging good effect on the surroundings, as well as business stakeholders. Massey Energy Company Mining is an important sector through which countries are able to exploit natural resources for their development and trading internationally. In as a much as the sector has many good returns to companies that invest in it, it also has several challenges and disadvantages when proper mechanisms and safety approaches are not created and implemented. Mining can be dangerous to the environment through noise and air pollution, besides leaving the land derelict and unable to handle agricultural activities. The failure to create and establish clear social responsibility programs for this mining company has landed it into many confrontational circumstances with law enforcement agencies in the country for a long time. According to reports from the company, there were numerous safety and regulatory violations by the company in between 2005 and 2009, the climax of these miseries was an explosion that claimed the lives of 29 workers, this was in Montcoal, West Virginia (Michael & Ian, 2010, p.6-7). According to reports from the company and law enforcement agency, the company is said to have been written up for a record 50 times, which is higher than any other company in the United States is. It is also recorded that in one of the company’s mining branches, a lot of time was being spent on dealing with work-site accidents than any other mine in the whole of the United States (Steven, Jerry & Ed, 2010, p.3-4). The company’s current approach to ethics and social responsibility Information from the federal government, as well as evidence from the company’s records show clearly that the company has had poor systems as far as creation and implementation of corporate social responsibility is concerned. The company has not created mechanisms through which the welfare of its workers can be maintained, this has led to poor structures to address safety issues for its esteemed workers. The fact that the company did not even have exit strategies in case of fire or any explosion shows the absence of full commitment towards care and protection of workers welfare. The absence of communication systems where workers in the mines can communicate with those on the ground adds impetus to the fact that the company has had little concern about the safety of its miners and workers in general. In addition, it has not cared to establish facilities that can absorb the build-up of methane gas and coal dust, despite the fact that these two elements are potential causes of dangerous explosions like the one that claimed the lives of its workers. Therefore, it is important to point out that as far as the safety and welfare of its workers are concerned, the company has made to commendable efforts. In fact, the company may be viewed as being profit-oriented as the expense of its workers welfare. For this reason, the company stands to be wound up for being a potential source of danger, however, it has been able to appeal most of the cases that have leveled against it and tried to implement actions that enhance the welfare of its workers during mining and other company operations. Implementing Social Responsibility and ethics in the company In order to improve the safety and welfare of workers in Massey Energy Company, it is important that a company establishes a team that will look into the issues that have risen and their impacts and create various policies that will advance its corporate social responsibility (Scheck, 2009, p.9). The team should ensure that the corporate social responsibility policies are strictly followed by all people in the company; there should be provisions for stiff penalties to parties that may violate the social responsibility and ethical standards. To begin with, there should be general training for the company managers and entire staff on the importance of safety practice in the company. Every person should be given opportunities to raise their sentiments and views about the company’s ability to create a safe working environment. After the training, the team should take the imitative of drafting various ethical practices that should be followed in the company; this should be after taking into considerations the views of all people. This process ensures that all staff is involved in improving their working condition, something that will make them feel appreciated by the company. The next step in creating ethical and social responsibility standards involves establishing a system that ensures safety measures in the company for the sake of worker’s safety in the case of an explosion or fire outbreak. For instance, the team could recommend installation of fire extinguisher systems at strategic locations, creation of exit paths in the company that workers can use to avoid effects of a possible explosion or fire outbreak. In addition, there could also be the creation of communication systems and channels such that people working in the mines can communicate with those on the ground effectively, this way it is easy to reduce the extent of damages in case of potential dangers. What would be the effect of closure of company for investing in safety measures? In order to reduce damages to the company when it loses workers and other resources in mines during explosions and fire outbreaks, one of the ways would be closing the mines temporary ad diverting its funds increasing safety systems, as well as ethical and social responsibility measures. In as much as it would be a potential source of losses in the short run, the company stands to benefit immensely in the future, this is because, its works would feel in the company’s work systems. Workers would feel secure and have the motivation to work with all their efforts, something that would increase the company’s prospects of effective performance and success. Inclosing the mines temporary, the company will have a chance of putting communication and other safety facilities so that people working in the mines would feel safe doing their work. In addition, the temporary closure will also give the company enough time to look into safety rules and regulations that are characteristic of other successful mining companies not only in the United States, but also in the entire world. At the same time, the company will also be in a position to examine safety measures, ethical and social responsibility practices that are practices in other mining companies. The exercise will be essential for the company’s management team to devise other ways of making the company have competitive advantages in the mining industry besides giving it a good position in the market. In this regard, the company is expected to emerge as a strong giant in the mining industry to compete with other established companies. Creating of social responsibility policies by the company will also involve partnership with legal authorities; in this case, the company will be made to take full responsibility of all liabilities resulting from its inability to live effectively by the CSR agreement (Visser, 2012, p.57). Since the company may not want to waste its precious time making cases in courts over compliance issues of CSR, it will be forced to work within the interest and spirit of ethical standards and social responsibility, in the end, it will emerge a successful company. Communication about the company’s commitment to CSR The company needs to redefine its commitment to the spirit of social responsibility, unlike in the past; the company has been known to have good communication about its commitment to the welfare and security of its works on its website while doing the exact opposite. In improving the company’s commitment to its communication and mission, there has to be evaluation systems to ensure that the company takes necessary measures to ensure safety of its workers in the mining fields and premises. Commitment to mission statement can only be achieved if there are accountability systems and structures in place. People that are tasked with the responsibility of overseeing the implementation of the company’s ethical and social responsibility standards should ensure that what s written in the vision and mission statements is happening on the ground. In doing so, the company will be positioning itself not just as a steward of its workers but a giant in the mining industry in terms of ethical practices. It is important for the company managers and other workers to understand that great companies in the world are not just those that make huge stock turn-over and profits, but also those that have created themselves better reputation in terms of caring for the welfare of its workers and the general environment in which it operates. One of the advantages of having clear and efficient work system and business environments is that it has a multiplier effect. In this regard, it is able to attract quality workers and other resources that are able to steer the company to effective performance and achievement of set goals and objectives. Therefore, the company should have a strategic approach to management, whereby it will create a long-term vision over its duties including establishing of a safe working environment for the interest of workers, as well as the whole company in general. Bibliography Cragg. W. 2009, Corporate social responsibility, Ashgate, Farnham, England. Gottschalk P. 2011, Corporate social responsibility, governance and corporate reputation, World Scientific, New Jersey. Michael C & Ian U. 2010, “Mine Operator Escape Extra Oversight after Warning,” The New York Times. Times, viewed, 15 September 2014. Scheck. P. 2009, The business case for corporate social responsibility understanding and measuring economic impacts of corporate social responsibility, Physica-Verlag, Heidelberg. Steven M, Jerry M & Ed O’. 2010, “West Virginia Mine Has Been Cited for Myriad Safety Violations,” The Washington Post. Viewed 15 September 2014. Visser W. 2012. CSR 2.0 Transforming Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility. Springer, Dordrecht. Read More