Labor Issues and Public Relations Miseries in Apple - Case Study Example

APPLE'S LABOR ISSUES AND PUBLIC RELATIONS MISERIES Student Name Course Name Date Introduction Public relations as a marketability tool has failed in many companies as the incumbent executives give it a cold shoulder. They instead prefer tainting their companies' corporate images at the expense of the exponentially growing profits. The corporate individuals have turned into propaganda tools to market themselves during their realm without caring about the employees who should be given the number one slot. In Public Relations: Critical Debates and Contemporary Practice L'Etang puts it clear that "when public opinion attempts to govern directly it is either a failure or a tyranny. It is not able to master the problem intellectually, or to deal with it except by wholesale impact."1 The case of Apple whose 62 manufacturing facilities out of 229 were found not top comply with the company's set of policies happen to fit into the situation room being described in the statement above2. Looking further into the problem, this article shall investigate the public opinion against Apple and observe the key lessons in that should be obtained from this study. The four models of public relations by Grunig shall also be reflected upon and the most appropriate be singled out in the case of Apple. Lastly the new era of digital social media has its share in the public relations cadre. This issue shall be discussed in depth to shed a light on what other companies ought to learn from this crucial case. Apple's Labour Issues and Public Relations Miseries Through psychological developments, it has been established that "men are poor judges of their own interests" with a capability of hoping from one option to the next without apparent reasons on their actions. The modern propagandists base their judgments not on public democracy but on a small group of bourgeoisie whose interests are purely profit driven3. The Apple corporate propagandists have actually established what the author of "Apple’s labour Issues and PR Miseries", Agnello states as a "nigh-messianic harbinger of technological bliss" in a very short period of time making their products the all-time famous sellers. With just above $ 100 billion in profits, it does make sense that the company is doing well in terms of financial development. There is a clear distinction between marketing and public relations in that the latter is associated with the company's reputation in the social sphere. Trotman Publishing has found it to be clear that the functions of a public relations department are purely associated with the image of the company4. Apple's corporate image sector has indeed been working towards achieving the positive outlook as required by the executive. The executive have failed on one hand to prove that the company is actually receiving its revenues through genuine means. The business is founded on cheap labour coupled by low tax accountabilities and highly flexible production systems. Talking of the highly flexible systems, the company has contracted manufacturing partners on their behalf such as Foxconn whose company regulations are not in line with those set by the law. The issue of employee mistreatment at the expense of boosting production levels has caused uproar against Apple5. Labour is extremely cheap among Apple's manufacturing plants, working conditions are poor and inhumane which has resulted to multiple deaths contrary to the sparkling image that the company purports to be built on. Media coverage has enabled the stakeholders and consumers to establish on what actually goes on behind the hidden space. The company management has gone a step further in fuelling the impunity in what state as the political arms working in favour of them. Instead of seeking alleviation measures, the executive has gone a notch higher to tell its clients not to worry about the issue while their fellow statesmen and women or even their families have been imposed on poor production environments. What is more is that it has come up that the company management sends malicious mails to its staff in support of status quo and their production partners. They have pretended as if there is nothing wrong even when protesters have come out in large numbers in support of work conditions review6. The company has not undertaken enough measure to deal with this case as much as it needs to be attended to as a matter of priority. Apple has been soft in dealing with cases of employees' mistreatment and other malpractices such as extended working hours. 62 out of 229 facilities used in manufacturing Apple commodities have been found not to comply with the code of ethics7. The company instead of punishing them, it has only suspended 2 of its subsidiaries to the dismay of the public. These according to the stakeholders were laudable steps considering the defaulting nature which these plants have taken. On the other side, these steps were lenient and Apple should consider all the defaulters on an equal ground in order to restore their public image. They should also conduct a periodical survey of their manufacturers top ensure that they adhere to the standard rules and regulations in order to streamline their working conditions as required by world labour organisations. The crisis management team has therefore failed its integrity tests by providing shoddy rulings on how to treat the defaulting subsidiaries. The public shall continue holding its own audits in ensuring that the company adheres to the regulations. If the executive arm of Apple does not rethink its actions, sooner or later there shall be a nosedive in sales since clients are also keen not only on the quality of the product but also the public image of companies they associate themselves with. The case of Apple company's labour issues comes in handy in propagating the fact that public relations is a very important aspect for a company's smooth coexistence within the host environment. Apple has had its share of public relations problems but unfortunately the executive have unfortunately displayed arrogance by publicly stating in that "the system works for us"8. It is important for other companies to learn that the public image is a very important marketing tool that if used correctly can boost the sales to the highest level ever. It should be noted that it is not easy to reconstruct damaged reputation as in this case. As much as the public image might not affect the sales in the case of Apple, this does not guarantee other companies survival in circumstances whereby they damage their reputation. It is therefore important for the management to learn on the importance of the public relations cadre within their companies. In understanding how to demystify such situations as the one being faced by Apple, there is need to apply professional theories developed over time to counter such situations. Grunig's four models of Public Relations were developed in 1984 with a view to save the corporates from public image crisis based on the models enlisted herein. These theories have been used by public relationships practitioners in coming up with amicable solutions for the good of the public and the company. The first model based on one way communication is the publicity model which involves persuasion as a way of influencing the public towards behaving positively on matters related to the company. The second model is also based on the same channel of communication and it is referred to as the public information model. The public information model struggles for corporate public relations through persistent lobbying on the public arena through their designated official communications agents and or media personnel. Grunig goes further to describe his third model as a one-way asymmetrical model that is based on one way communication. Although this model does not go deep into research on the public's perception of the company, the public relations professionals who adopt this method manipulate the audience for the fulfilment of the company's desires. This is also called a scientific persuasion9 to some extent since it entirely depends on the stakeholders' feedback in trying to make improvements on public relations. The results are then used to alter the public attitude towards the company in a short term manner. The last model is the two-way asymmetrical communication which needs fully seasoned public relations officers within a corporate setting as it involves extensive procedures10. The two-way symmetric model should be applied in solving the public relations crises that are facing Apple. This system is based on a free altercation of information to inspire a change in the attitude of both the organization and the public members. This model is also applied in governmentally regulated organizations that should live up to the task of proving their social responsibility11. According to Turney, the two way symmetric public relations depend on how honest the feedback is. The stakeholders have to be honest in order for them to reach a consensus on a neutral playground. The fact is that Apple Company has to assume this model since it is a give and take kind of situation whereby the social corporate responsibility awaits to be fulfilled by the end of the day. The foci of all public relations machineries should be set up on cleaning the mess by the executive office which has tainted Apple's name by publicly declaring on how well connected the company is. The public relations team according to Grunig should undertake the negotiations in a painstaking manner to avoid further tainting of the company's image. This shall also depend on the feedback provided by the stakeholders and their willingness to adopt new compromises. The executive should be ready to engage in public relations and give in to making significant changes within their organisational setup based on the verdict by the end of the study period12. The case of Apple comes at a time of heightened social media effects on public relations. The social media has elicited tensions on various matters that are of public interest thereby finding the unprepared companies off guard. It has been established that the social media is one of the fastest platforms of mass communication in this digital age13. The correct usage of this tool has turned out to be strategic for those companies embracing it like Apple. It has been noted by Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty that in this age of social media there is "an 85% likelihood of experiencing a significant corporate crisis in any 5-year interval"14. With all the propaganda and news that is being traded in the internet and social media outlets it is good for the upcoming or the existing corporates to learn on how to solve matters amicably and the executive should not be led by emotions lest they soil the hard earned reputation. There companies should also learn that they will face constant criticism in this era of social media. This calls for setting up of departments that are purely social media oriented and specialised. This however shall mean that the public relations departments have to be on the lookout always as every second counts on the social media. The major task is not therefore setting up the social media public relations departments but rather monitoring the negative comments that arise from the critics15. Apple is an information technology oriented company owning some of the most creative social media geniuses. With this kind of experience, other firms should realize this in order for the reality to hit them that they need to pull up their socks before the reality dawns on them too. The painful reality is that with this kind of transformation in information technology and social media, the upcoming and established corporates need to rethink on their public relations strategies and get new thinkers for that matter. It is no doubt that companies need to guard their reputation with all zeal and zest. Corporates should acknowledge the power of the social media and state engaging their public relations departments in it as one way of guarding their reputation since this is where most happy and disgruntled clients unwind. There is need by the companies to not only get involved but to get digitally proactive in coming up with optimistic articles for the blogs and start giving satisfying feedbacks to those in other social outlets like Facebook and Twitter. This should however be done in a speedy but a painstaking manner in order to avoid ruining the image further in cases where critic are too hard on the company. It is also important to listen and respond through use of internet monitoring and filtering tools designed to fit this function. Corporates should take advantage of social media and internet marketing tools to avoid such crises as one faced by Apple16. Conclusion Apple's labour Issues and PR Miseries by Agnello serves as a good piece for those companies that might be in a public relations crisis. Grunig's symmetric model has been suggested in this case study as the paramount theorem for solving the miseries faced by Apple in 2010. Deductions have been made on emphasis by the upcoming or established corporates to use or at least monitor the social media so that they cannot be found off guard when crises hit them. It is also important for all public relations departments to use the social media as a marketing tool in order to create or better their reputations. Bibliography Agnello, Anthony John. Apple’s Labor Issues and PR Miseries. February 10, 2012. http://investorplace.com/2012/02/apples-labor-issues-and-pr-miseries-aapl-msft-dell-mmi/ (accessed March 31, 2013). Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. "Reputation: the most precious asset." October 2012. http://www.agcs.allianz.com/assets/PDFs/Product%20brochures/2029_Allianz-Reputation-Brochure_10-2012.pdf (accessed April 1, 2013). Green, Andy . Creativity in Public Relations. London: Kogan Page Publishers, 2010. Grunig, James E., and Larissa A. Grunig. Public relations research annual. 2. . New Jersey: Routledge, 1990. L'Etang, Jacquie. Public Relations: Critical Debates and Contemporary Practice. New Jersey: Routledge, 2006. Lockey, Catherine. 5 Steps to Protect Your Image Online – Digital Reputation Management. March 12, 2010. http://www.cyclonemarketing.info/2010/03/12/5-steps-to-protect-your-image-online-digital-reputation-management-2/ (accessed April 1, 2013). PRhistory.com. The Two-way Symmetric Model . n.d. http://faculty.camdencc.edu/abreve/prhistory/home/symm.htm (accessed April 1, 2013). Public Relations Institute of Australia. Social Media and Public Relations. 2013. http://www.pria.com.au/newsadvocacy/social-media-and-public-relations (accessed April 1, 2013). Trotman Publishing. Public Relations. London: Crimson Publishing, 2001. Turney, Michael . Asymmetric v. symmetric public relations. 1998. http://www.nku.edu/~turney/prclass/readings/3eras3x.html (accessed April 1, 2013). Read More