Reflections on our Class CSR Project

For our Lasallian Leadership Business class, our innovation was implementing a class project rather than a project per group. We decided to implement our CSR activity in Sta. Monica Elementary School in Hagonoy, Bulacan.  The school was severely affected by Typhoon Lando with floodwaters rushing inside the school compound and inundating its facilities.

We partnered with the school by proposing to implement the following activities:

1    Repainting some eighty school chairs and desks; and

2   Constructing an elevated concrete pathway from the entrance of the school towards the main building.

The second activity was especially requested by the school since during typhoons, students are unable to enter the flooded entrance of the school. With the construction of the pathway, a means of access was provided to ensure the safe entry and exit of all students and teachers during times of calamity.

For our fund raising activity, our group decided to sell t-shirts in the Lasallian colors of green and white, bearing the messages “The ends does not justify the means” and “Got ethics?” We sold these shirts primarily through our friends, classmates and colleagues at work and as such, our group was able to raised Php 9,730 as our contribution to the class pool of funds.

Two batches of students undertook the activity; the first batch went on November 22. 2015 and the succeeding batch went on the following week, November 29, 2015.

The following were the issues that arose during implementation of the CSR project:

1.    Administrative issues

-       Who will procure the supplies for the project

-       Division of labor during implementation of the CSR activity

2.    Substantive issues

-       How to ensure completion of the project within the given time frame

-       How to apply the learnings in class to this activity

I am pleased to report that a class project has a higher impact to the partner community as compared to a group project. This is because as a class we were able to raise a larger amount of funds and as such was able to implement a more complex project i.e. the pathway construction. All students actively participated and it is noteworthy that there were no freeloaders; all of us were hard at work to ensure the project’s successful completion.

It is fitting that we undertook a CSR project to help improve a school’s facilities. St. Lasalle was a teacher who was known for being an innovator and a servant-mentor, among others. As Lasallian business leaders, a CSR project such as this reminded us that it is our responsibility to help especially those who are in need and to be part of the solution for the various problems that our country is facing.

Evaluation of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) State of My Company

For this blog, I would like to highlight what I have written in my Individual CSR project proposal for my company.

I work for the National Electrification Administration (NEA), a government owned or controlled corporation (GOCC) under the Department of Energy. We are the agency tasked to implement the Rural Electrification Program (REP) of the country. Our vision is “Total electrification on an area coverage by 2020” and our mission is “To pursue the mandate of rural electrification and to provide financial, institutional and technical assistance to electric distribution utilities (electric cooperatives) to make them highly competitive in delivering quality service.”

Guided by our core values of “Absolute Honesty, Maximum Efficiency and Total Solidarity”, we have spread the gospel of rural electrification for the past 46 years to tell the story of rural Filipinos freed from the crippling effects of darkness.

In the class session about CSR, one of the topics was about the “Boat of Life” wherein there is an unequal access to integral human development and that corporations are described as “Maintaining”, “Exploiting” or “Ameliorating” in their operations.

I am proud to say that we at NEA can be considered as an “Ameliorating” corporate boat, for what can be nobler than uplifting the lives of our fellow Filipinos that live in the countryside by providing them with the benefits of electricity; a benefit that most of us already take for granted but for the rest of our countrymen is just a dream. We at NEA are vigorously turning that dream into a reality.

This is confirmed by the numerous awards and citations received by NEA, most recently is the Islands of Good Governance (IGG) award, in which public sector agencies were recognized by the Institute for Solidarity in Asia (ISA) for their efforts in transformative and sustainable good governance reforms.

To end this blog, I would like to quote our Administrator that “The journey of energizing the countryside is a journey taken on not by the agency and the electric cooperatives alone. It is, above all, a journey of a nation that has learned to remain hopeful for an energized future.

Marcopper

Our group reported in class the Marcopper case. As a background of the case, “the Marcopper Mining Disaster occurred on March 24, 1996 on the Philippine island of Marinduque, a province of the Philippines located in the Mimaropa region in Luzon. It remains one of the largest mining disasters in Philippine history. A fracture in the drainage tunnel of a large pit containing leftover mine tailings led to a discharge of toxic mine waste into the Makulapnit-Boac river system and caused flash floods in areas along the river. One village, Barangay Hinapulan, was buried in six feet of muddy floodwater, causing the displacement of 400 families. Twenty other villages had to be evacuated. Drinking water was contaminated killing fish and freshwater shrimp. Large animals such as cows, pigs and sheep were overcome and killed. The flooding caused the destruction of crops and irrigation channels. Following the disaster, the Boac River was declared unusable.”

(www. /en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcopper_mining_disaster)

As an ethical issue, our group stated that “What can the government do to address the current environmental and economic issues of the mining industry?”, considering the fact that the mining industry is often accused of not bringing its promised benefits to the host communities.

The group then presented the following alternative courses of actions:

1.    Suspend the grant pending the review of the Mining Law

2.    Continue the mining industry and ensure that an environmental management plan would be integrated into the socio-economic development of the host communities; and

3.    Shut down all mining operations in the country

The group recommended that ACA number 2 was the best alternative.

However, upon subsequent reflection, I realize some of the errors in our analysis of the case, which was also pointed out by our professor. One is which is that these ACAs are not equal in weight; our group in its eagerness to ensure a “win-win” recommendation, failed to realize that the ACAs are not mutually exclusive. Another is that we should have considered the timeline of the case when we were developing our SWOT analysis.

Mea culpa.

As a lesson learned from this case, the laws enabling the mining industry and protecting the environment are already in place, there should have been stricter implementation of its policies and stronger enforcement by the responsible agencies. Let me end by quoting  Manny Pangilinan in his speech during a forum in Makati, “mining is not the enemy, poverty is.” 

The Ozone Threat: Managing With Uncertainty

This case discusses the issues facing the Dupont Company, the largest producer of the one billion pounds of fluorocarbons (valued at $450 million) manufactured in the United States in 1974. The company was facing a backlash for the harmful effects of its products, which was being charged with decreasing the ozone layer surrounding the earth which protects its residents from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation.

Chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, are compounds made up of combinations of the elements chlorine, fluorine and carbon; aerosols, refrigerants and foams contain CFCs. When these CFCs enter the air, they rise up into the atmosphere to meet up with and destroy ozone molecules. First used in 1928, CFCs have since become more common as various other CFC compounds were created. Some of the better-known CFCs are the Freon compounds, which were used as cooling ingredients in refrigerators and air conditioners. (www.science.opposingviews.com).

Several scientific studies have confirmed that If CFCs continue proliferating in the upper atmosphere, it will lead to the eventual degradation of the ozone layer. However, there are also some credible reports which gives the opposing view that ozone depletion came as the result of sources other than CFCs.

As pointed out in the Journal of Business Ethics, “the real test of business ethics is how well it can handle issues in which the right course is not certain and in which there are no exact precedents.” Indeed, as the chairman of the Dupont board said, “why should they be prejudged…before any answers are found?”

Initially, Dupont was coming from an economic mindset; as the leading producer of CFC, it was in its best interest to protect a multimillion-dollar industry. Subsequently, when public opinion was turning, they utilized a political framework by actively blocking the passage of key legislation that would have limited the production of CFCs. Eventually when the scientific community were mostly unilateral in their condemnation of products using CFCs, Dupont used an ethical strategy by actively pursuing the signing of the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty to phase out production of ozone-depleting products.

Uncertainty is a part of the operating reality of any business. When the uncertainty of the ozone depletion of CFCs was becoming an issue, Dupont should be guided not only by its mission and vision, but also by the core values that the company espouses. They should have asked not only “What is our product?” but also “What does our company represent?”

Silent Initiative: Pedro’s Commitment to the Hearing Impaired

The reporting group presented the case “Silent Initiative: Pedro’s Commitment to the Hearing Impaired.” The case talks about Lamoiyan Corporation, a Filipino firm well known for producing personal hygiene products such as Hapee Toothpaste. It details the management style of its founder, Mr. Cecilio Kwok Pedro, who is well known for his Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of employing persons with disabilities (PWDs), particularly those who are hearing-impaired. Mr. Pedro advocacy was helping PWDs to earn decent wages by providing them jobs where other companies may be hesitant to do so.

In the Philippines, Republic Act No. 7277 or the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, which was passed in 1992, ensures that PWDs should be able to have equal opportunities for suitable employment as their able-bodied counterparts. The Magna Carta specifies that the State “shall adopt policies ensuring the rehabilitation, self-development and self-reliance of disabled persons and shall develop their skills and potentials to enable them to compete favorably for available opportunities.”

In a discussion paper series published by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) entitled “Employment of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the Philippines: The Case of Metro Manila and Rosario, Batangas,” it was cited that “A number of policies, programs and services had already been implemented in relation to employment of PWDs. There have also been employment-related programs and services provided by the government to PWDs, which include the following: Tulong Alalay sa Taong May Kapansanan (TULAY) program, or Support services to PWDs, of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE); Assistance package for PWDs of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI); Philippine National Skills Competition for PWDs of the Technical, Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA); Science and Technology Intervention for the Poor, the Vulnerable and PWDs of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).”

With these various programs and services that are in place, however, employment of PWDs is still limited. In the PIDS paper, it mentioned that education is a critical factor in gaining employment and that some PWDs are “vulnerably employed” or have jobs that have no security of tenure. The paper also suggests some interventions that the government may pursue to further encourage PWD employment.

It is in this context that Mr. Pedro and Lamoiyan Corporation should be recognized for their pioneering efforts and ethical business behavior in helping the PWDs in the country become participative members of the society by providing them gainful and secure employment. 

The Gap

At class today, the reporting group presented the case about the ethical issues faced by Gap Inc., when they were charged with sourcing from Central American suppliers that had human rights violations and subsistence-level wages in their factories. The Gap Inc. or commonly known as Gap, is an American clothing and accessories retailer that was founded in 1969 and has headquarters in San Francisco, California. The company has several well- known brands such as Old Navy, Banana Republic as well as its namesake.

In this case, Gap was beset with claims that they used factories that resisted union efforts to organize, utilized minors in its production lines and exceeded the maximum workweek hours that were allowed by law. Internal assessment of these factories showed “[Gap’s] investigation has not uncovered any significant evidence…or serious violations of sourcing guidelines”, which is contrary to what was being reported by the National Labor Relations Committee and by the mass media.

At the end of the case, it asks that “Is a company like the Gap morally responsible for the way its suppliers treat their workers?” In my analysis of the case, the answer is in the negative as Gap and its apparel supplier have no employer-employee relationship. However, Gap is morally responsible to implement ethical procurement practices and ensure that their merchandise are not products of sweatshop factories with dubious manufacturing processes.

As a result of this labor controversy, Gap implemented more stringent steps to address this situation and implemented rigorous standards in supplier selection. This is affirmed in their website wherein the company states that:

“We partner with suppliers to build a sustainable value chain that improves workers’ well-being and our business performance.

We assess working conditions and human rights at over 95 percent of the factories — more than 800 facilities — that make our branded apparel at least once per year. We work with factories to fix issues that need to be resolved to meet the international standards in our Code of Vendor Conduct and Human Rights Policy. These often lead to corrective actions that improve working conditions and protect workers’ rights.

Our field team visits factories to meet with workers and managers and assess working conditions. Most team members are locally hired, live in the country or region where factories are located and speak the local language. They often get to know specific factories and workers well over a period of years and take a sincere interest in looking out for workers’ well-being.”

Random Musings on the Ethics of Election Twerking

During Session 6 of the Lasallian Business Leadership class, the ethical reasoning based on the principles of Utilitarianism, Rights, Justice and Fairness, Ethics of Care and Virtue Ethics was discussed. For this edition of my blog, I would like to relate these principles and how it applies to one of the hot-button issues of the day, the raunchy performance of the Playgirls during the Liberal Party gathering.

First, a little background. As reported by several broadsheets, including the Philippine Daily Inquirer, last October 1, 2015, during the Liberal Party oath-taking of some 80 local officials and simultaneously, the birthday celebration of Laguna Rep. Benjie Agarao, the sexy dance group the Playgirls did the twerk onstage, with the active participation of these local officials. The Playgirls were reportedly a “gift” by MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino to spice up a rather humdrum affair.

Using the Ethics Framework, let us analyse further this issue:

Utilitarian – Does the action maximize net social utility? Who benefits? Who are harmed? What’s the balance?

In this situation, the immediate beneficiaries of this action are obviously the male members of the gathering; in fact, it was reported that the “mostly middle-aged audience wildly cheered the performance.” The Playgirls benefited too as according to their manager, ever since the issue erupted, they have been swamped with more bookings. Those who were harmed, however, were women’s groups who felt demeaned by this dance and especially minors who were also watching the rather “adult” performance. The action seemed at first to maximize net social utility but with the negative feedback that had been generated, its effects would have been minimized.

Rights – Is it consistent with the moral rights of those affected? Whose rights are promoted? Whose rights are violated?

Watching the enjoyment of the male members of the party, it seems that moral rights were not a primary concern to them. The rights of Chairman Tolentino to hire the Playgirls and the right of this group to earn a living, “trabaho lang,” are promoted. The rights of the female LP party members who were offended are those that are violated.

Justice and Fairness – Does it lead to just distribution? Is it fair? What if it were done to us? What if everybody did it?

The action was fair if one considers it as a purely business transaction. However, if public funds were used to hire the Playgirls, it would not only be unfair, but may be illegal.

Ethics of Care – Does it exhibit appropriate care for those with whom we have special relationships? Will it enhance trusting relationships with people we care about or whose relationships we value?

With the “kumpare” system of our society, Chairman Tolentino may have felt that he cared for his fellow party members by hiring the Playgirls. However, with the resulting backlash and come election time, will the voters care enough for the Liberal Party by giving them their votes?

Virtue Ethics – How will this act help me to develop a morally virtuous character? Will it make me a better person?

As savvy politicians, the Liberal Party members should know better than to hire a sexy dance group in an official party function.

This issue further proves the interconnection of showbiz and politics in the Philippine society, the “old song-and-dance routine regularly performed by aspirants of public office.” The positive outcome, however, that may result is that voters may choose this coming election to select ethical and moral leaders that would work, rather than twerk.