Friendly Work Environment in Hong Kong - Research Paper Example

Table of Contents Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 2 Chapter 1.1 Research Objective 2 Chapter 1.2 Background 3 Chapter 2 PRELIMINARY LITERATURE REVIEW 4 Chapter 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 5 Chapter 3.1 Validity 6 Chapter 4 REFERENCING 7 Chapter 1 - Introduction In 2014, Hong Kong’s department of health conducted a survey on breastfeeding trends in Hong Kong. The survey revealed that the rate of women who ever breastfeed their children at hospital discharge was a bit high at 86% which was an improvement from 83% in 2012. Unfortunately, this rate had declined to only 25% in 2014 by the time the children reach 12 months of age. This was still an improvement from the 19% recorded in 2012. The situation is even worse when we consider the women who exclusively breastfeed their babies in Hong Kong. Only 2.3% of babies were exclusively breastfed by the age of 6 months in 2012 with the rate declining to only 1.2% in 2014. (Department of Health, 2015). This is a worrying trend given that the rates are some of the lowest globally. This is also despite the many benefits associated with exclusive breastfeeding of babies during their early ages as recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) (Center for Health Protection 2014). According to South China Morning post (Wang 2016, this is attributed to lack of support at home, in hospitals and more so at work. The result is poor health for the affected children as well as loss of morale for the working mothers who find themselves working at the expense of their children’s health. Work places are partly to blame for failing to provide breastfeeding friendly workplaces as part of their CSR activities. (UNICEF, 2016b) Chapter 1.1 - Research objectives The research is aimed at showing that there is a direct relationship between willingness to conduct breastfeeding associated activities and availability of a breastfeeding-friendly work environment for lactating employees. Another objective is to show that there is a direct relationship between unwillingness to conduct breastfeeding associated activities and lack of provision of breastfeeding friendly work environment for lactating employees. Finally, the research will show that there is a direct relationship between corporate social responsibility and provision of breastfeeding-friendly work environment for lactating employees. Chapter 1.2 - Background Breastfeeding is an optimal source of complete nutrition for the newborns. This is because breastfeeding has a lot of benefits both to the child and the nursing mother. On the other hand, the health risks associated with failing to breastfeed or adopting infant formulas are many (fhs, 2016). Breastfeeding is associated with the ability to protect the child against infectious diseases as long as several other benefits including improved intellectual capacity, prevention of allergies as well as reduction of cardiovascular risk factors. In order to realize these benefits, the world health organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for up to six months and even continuation after introducing solid foods to the baby (Biomedcentral.co, 2016). Despite the associated benefits, it is worth noting that Hong Kong in comparison with other developed nations as far as breastfeeding is concerned. This is despite recommendations by Hong Kong’s department of health as well as the government actively promoting breastfeeding. Thus, Hong Kong’s breastfeeding duration is below the WHO recommendations. This is because most of Hong Kong women stop breastfeeding within the first few months. The high breastfeeding attrition rates in Hong Kong are to be attributed to social cultural variables including lack of workplace support for breastfeeding. . Most working places lack supportive environment for breastfeeding which results in discontinuation of mother’s milk and breastfeeding. Thus this research will show that the provision of breastfeeding facilities in the workplace as part of CRS is key to improving the breastfeeding trends in Hong Kong (Vera, 2016). Chapter 2 - Preliminary literature review A lot of literature exists in support of provision of lactation support and facilities for working mothers as part of corporate social responsibility. Similarly, a number of authors have linked provision of such support and facilities to organization’s awareness of their corporate social responsibility obligations. In addition, literature has linked the breastfeeding trends in many societies to the provision of breastfeeding friendly environments be it at home, in public or at workplace. Consequently, it can be concluded that organizations should undertake provision of breastfeeding friendly working environment as their most important CSR activity as provision of the associated facilities will lead to increasing breastfeeding trends among mothers across the world. Clapp (2008) states that CSR should recognize that firms are not just mere sellers and producers but they also have legal and moral obligations to the people they employ. Thus, it should also focus on respecting of workers’ rights and implementation of antidiscrimination policies. This is what Carroll (2016) calls the moral management of organizational stakeholders who include breast feeding employees. Such rights and policies should include provision of lactation support and facilities to the working mothers. UNICEF (2016a) sees provision of lactation support as a great CSR initiative in showing that a firm supports and respects children’s rights and wellbeing. Acas (2016) on the other hand views provision of decent support for pregnant and breastfeeding women beyond legal compliance as an activity organization’s can take in maximizing the positive impact on children. Klein (2000) on the other hand links exclusive breastfeeding and hence provision of related support and facilities to a lot of benefits not just for the mothers and children but also for the firm and the economy as a whole. As such, he suggests that an organization’s CSR policy should also include strategies of supporting nursing mothers to ensure that their young ones are exclusively breastfed for the first six months as recommended by WHO. In support of the claims, Ng (2016) cites advantages of promotion of a breastfeeding friendly workplace to a number of advantages including increased productivity, retention of best talent and reduction of operational costs in addition to the health benefits accruing to both the baby and the mother. Rollins etal (2016) gives reasons why organizations should invest in facilities to help lactating mothers with one reason being increasing the number of women who exclusively breastfeed their babies. The same notion is held by Tarrant (2016) who states that provision of such facilities would greatly enhance the continued breastfeeding by lactating mothers returning to work. Rollins et. al. (2016) associates the low numbers of mothers who exclusively breastfeed their babies for the first six months of their lives to companies that fail to promote breastfeeding friendly workplace. Cheng (2016) for instance states that 40% of breastfeeding mothers in Hong Kong have had unpleasant experiences in their working places and in public as well. Such experiences include being stared at, being advised to breastfeed in other places, being stopped in their tracks and being complained to as well as being accused of wasting the company’s time according to baby friendly (2016). UNICEF (2016a) states that as a result, most of the mothers are forced to breastfeed in unhealthy environments such as the toilet while a great number of them opt for milk supplements and forego breastfeeding so as to concentrate on work. The result according to Utting (2000) is loss of morale for the mothers and fathers as well as poor health for both the child and the mother. Thus, Utting (2000) sees provision of breastfeeding friendly working place as a vital CSR strategy that not only benefits the child and the mother but also the company and the economy as a whole through increased women participation in economy building as well as increased productivity. Consequently, Utting (2000) suggests that increasing awareness of CSR obligations among corporates would see them invest more in breastfeeding friendly working places. This according to Cheng (2016) would significantly increase the number of women participating in economic development of their countries as well as healthier children as a result of exclusive breastfeeding. Chapter 3 - Research methodology The research will make use of secondary data showing availability of breastfeeding-friendly work environment as one of the determinants for lactating employees to continue breastfeeding as a determinant of breastfeeding trend. The data so collected will be used in examining the relationship between breastfeeding trends and availability of breastfeeding friendly work environment. Data analysis This research will use Narrative analysis as the, method of data analysis. In this method, the researcher will analyze personal experiences documented by various researchers in forming opinions on the topic of research. Different ideas and personal experiences will be compared to form an opinion on the importance of firms providing breastfeeding friendly work places as part of their corporate social responsibility activities. Chapter 3.1 - Validity Lactation or more precisely breastfeeding is by nature a responsibility of human beings following reproved continuity of lives and thus the world. However, it is observed that the lack of support such as availability of breastfeeding-friendly work environment for the nowadays working women very often causes working mothers to give up breastfeeding which is replaced by formula milk. Past research evidence has shown that the use of formulae milk could lead to various short-term and long-term health issues of the infants. To preserve the health and wealth of our community and the world at large and therefore, from the perspective of corporate social responsibility, this research aims to demonstrate if there exists a direct relationship between availability of breastfeeding-friendly work environment and the breastfeeding trend with a view to make suitable recommendations for the community including but not limited to the government and employers. Chapter 4 - References Acas.org.uk, 2016, Accommodating breastfeeding employees in the workplace, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; http://www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/j/k/Acas_guide_on_accommodating_breastfeeding_in_the_workplace_(JANUARY2014).pdf UNICEF, 2016a, Establishing a conducive working environment for women, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; http://www.unicef.org/malaysia/Unicef-BBPC-Nursing-Mothers-Program-at-Workplace-Malaysia.pdf UNICEF, 2016b, Breastfeeding friendly workplace, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; http://www.sayyestobreastfeeding.hk/en/intro/ Ng, J2016, Promoting a breastfeeding friendly workplace in Hong Kong, Retrieved on 25th June 2016; http://csr-asia.com/csr-asia-weekly-news-detail.php?id=12582 Medela.com, 2016, Corporate social responsibility, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; https://www.medela.com/company/about/corporate-social-responsibility Clapp, J2008, Corporate accountability and sustainable development, Delhi, Oxford University Press. Klein, N. 2000, No logo: Taking aim at the brand bullies, London, Flamingo. Utting, P. 2000, Business responsibility for sustainable development, Occasional paper No. 2, UNRISD, Geneva. Cheng, K. 2016, 40% of breastfeeding mothers in HK have had unpleasant experiences in public- survey, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; https://www.hongkongfp.com/2016/05/05/40-of-breastfeeding-moms-in-hk-have-had-unpleasant-experiences-in-public-survey/ babyfriendly.org.hk, 2016, Say yes to breastfeeding, Retrieved on 25th June 2016, from; http://www.babyfriendly.org.hk/en/2015/09/21/%e6%af%8d%e4%b9%b3%e8%82%b2%e5%ac%b0%e9%bd%8a%e5%92%8c%e6%87%89/ Rollins, N, Nita, B, Hajeebhoy, N, Horton, S, Lutter, C, Martines, J, Piwoz, E, Richter, L&, Victora, C. 2016, Breastfeeding 2 why invest, and what it will take to improve breastfeeding practices? The Lancet, January. Carroll, B. 2016, The pyramid of corporate social responsibility: Toward the moral management of organizational stakeholders, Business Horizons, vol.34, no. 4, pp. 39-48. Tarrant, M., Dodgson, J. &, Kay, V. 2016, Becoming a role model: The breastfeeding trajectory of Hong Kong women breastfeeding longer than 6 months, International Journal of Nursing Studies, vol. 1, no. 3. Pp. 1-13. Wang, J. 2015, Hong Kong lags behind in support for breastfeeding mothers, Retrieved on 29th July 2016, from; http://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1847393/hong-kong-lags-behind-support-breastfeeding-mothers Vera, K. 2016, Implementation of Mother-friendly workplace policies in Hong Kong, Retrieved on 29th July 2016, from; http://hkjgom.org/sites/default/files/pdf/v15n1-implementation.pdf Center for Health Protection 2014, Optimizing Breastfeeding Practices: A Link to Life Long Health, Non-Communicatiable Diseases Watch. Retrieved on 16th July from; http://www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/ncd_watch_feb2014.pdf Hong Kong Baptist Hospital 2012, Summary of Results of Breastfeeding Survey, Retrieved on 16th July from; http://www.hkbh.org.hk/doc/PR_HKBH_PC%20on%20survey_120725_Summary_e__vf.pdf Department of Health 2015, Breastfeeding Survey 2015, Retrieved from 14th July 2016, from; http://www.fhs.gov.hk/english/reports/files/BF_survey_2015.pdf Biomedcentral.co, 2016, Breastfeeding and weaning practices among Hong Kong mothers: A prospective study, Retrieved on 5th August 2016, from; http://bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2393-10-27 fhs,2016, Hong Kong code of marketing and quality of formula milk and related products and foos products for infants & young children (The HK code), Retrieved on 5th August 2016, from; http://www.fhs.gov.hk/english/archive/hkcode/hkcode.html Read More

Breastfeeding is associated with the ability to protect the child against infectious diseases as long as several other benefits including improved intellectual capacity, prevention of allergies as well as reduction of cardiovascular risk factors. In order to realize these benefits, the world health organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for up to six months and even continuation after introducing solid foods to the baby (Biomedcentral.co, 2016). Despite the associated benefits, it is worth noting that Hong Kong in comparison with other developed nations as far as breastfeeding is concerned.

This is despite recommendations by Hong Kong’s department of health as well as the government actively promoting breastfeeding. Thus, Hong Kong’s breastfeeding duration is below the WHO recommendations. This is because most of Hong Kong women stop breastfeeding within the first few months. The high breastfeeding attrition rates in Hong Kong are to be attributed to social cultural variables including lack of workplace support for breastfeeding. . Most working places lack supportive environment for breastfeeding which results in discontinuation of mother’s milk and breastfeeding.

Thus this research will show that the provision of breastfeeding facilities in the workplace as part of CRS is key to improving the breastfeeding trends in Hong Kong (Vera, 2016). Chapter 2 - Preliminary literature review A lot of literature exists in support of provision of lactation support and facilities for working mothers as part of corporate social responsibility. Similarly, a number of authors have linked provision of such support and facilities to organization’s awareness of their corporate social responsibility obligations.

In addition, literature has linked the breastfeeding trends in many societies to the provision of breastfeeding friendly environments be it at home, in public or at workplace. Consequently, it can be concluded that organizations should undertake provision of breastfeeding friendly working environment as their most important CSR activity as provision of the associated facilities will lead to increasing breastfeeding trends among mothers across the world. Clapp (2008) states that CSR should recognize that firms are not just mere sellers and producers but they also have legal and moral obligations to the people they employ.

Thus, it should also focus on respecting of workers’ rights and implementation of antidiscrimination policies. This is what Carroll (2016) calls the moral management of organizational stakeholders who include breast feeding employees. Such rights and policies should include provision of lactation support and facilities to the working mothers. UNICEF (2016a) sees provision of lactation support as a great CSR initiative in showing that a firm supports and respects children’s rights and wellbeing.

Acas (2016) on the other hand views provision of decent support for pregnant and breastfeeding women beyond legal compliance as an activity organization’s can take in maximizing the positive impact on children. Klein (2000) on the other hand links exclusive breastfeeding and hence provision of related support and facilities to a lot of benefits not just for the mothers and children but also for the firm and the economy as a whole. As such, he suggests that an organization’s CSR policy should also include strategies of supporting nursing mothers to ensure that their young ones are exclusively breastfed for the first six months as recommended by WHO.

In support of the claims, Ng (2016) cites advantages of promotion of a breastfeeding friendly workplace to a number of advantages including increased productivity, retention of best talent and reduction of operational costs in addition to the health benefits accruing to both the baby and the mother. Rollins etal (2016) gives reasons why organizations should invest in facilities to help lactating mothers with one reason being increasing the number of women who exclusively breastfeed their babies.

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