Publicize Social Consciousness

What do the Catholic Church and Nike have in common? Both are pushing back against negative publicity for actions they’ve taken—or more accurately, actions they’ve not taken. With the Catholic Church, the issue is abuse of children. In a much less well-known matter, the issue with Nike is severance pay.
     Two Honduran subcontractors to Nike refused to pay a total of about $2.6 million to workers who lost their jobs when factories were suddenly closed. Protestors say the severance payments are required under Honduran law. Last week, University of Wisconsin-Madison announced that because of Nike’s failure to take action in the matter, the university is terminating its licensing agreement with Nike.
     The University of Wisconsin announcement read to me like the licensing termination was a negotiating tactic—not only with Nike, but also with the groups pressuring the university to take action. The chancellor praised Nike’s previous commitment to ethical working conditions worldwide and said she remains hopeful the severance pay matter can be resolved.
     If you find yourself subjected to negative publicity about your ethics, research suggests that one way to get out in front of the story is to demonstrate your social consciousness. Where to begin? Nike has said they’re paying for training and job placement for the displaced workers.
     But maybe you hesitate addressing employee rights because your business operates in societies which think government oversight is excessive. In this case, you might start with social responsibility issues designed to bring you largely supportive attention within the societies that matter to your business.
     For instance, almost everybody supports reducing the amount of trash we generate. Your first publicizing of social responsibility might involve ways you sell products which use refillable containers, favor vendors that minimize unnecessary packing, and accept old products for recycling. It's a start.