Moralizing The Corporation

Each chapter in this book by itself is a worthy contribution to the existing research on the TNC in a globalised world. In-spire, Journal of Law, Politics and Societies The argument of this book is so powerful and convincing because it focuses on global subpolitics: the corporate (ir)responsibility, the power of its critics, and the consuming citizen. This shift of perspectives and its sophistication makes Moralizing the Corporation a must-read for anyone interested in the dynamics of globalization. Ulrich Beck, University of Munich, Germany Moralizing the Corporation offers a multi-disciplinary analysis of the conflicts between transnational corporations and transnational advocacy groups. The book is theoretically sophisticated and full of interesting and nuanced empirical findings that generate new knowledge about the relationship between politics and markets. It views transnational corporations as quasi-public institutions and explains their vulnerability to the non-state authority of political consumers and protest groups. Holzer develops theory on transnational subpolitics and corporate reflexivity and should be read by scholars and activists alike. Michele Micheletti, University of Stockholm, Sweden This insightful book examines how transnational corporations respond to the challenges of anti-corporate activism and political consumerism. In prominent cases involving major corporations such as Nestlé, Nike and Royal Dutch/Shell, transnational activists have successfully mobilized public opinion and consumers against alleged corporate misdemeanours. Campaigns and boycott calls can harm a corporation s image but, as this book points out, public scrutiny also gives corporations the opportunity to present themselves as responsible and accountable corporate citizens who subscribe to the very norms and values propagated by the activists. Academics, scholars and postgraduate students in international business management, organization studies, social movement studies and political sociology will find this book invaluable.

It is uncontroversial that corporations are legal agents that can be held legally responsible, but can corporations also be moral agents that are morally responsible? Part one of this book explicates the most prominent theories of corporate moral agency and provides a detailed debunking of why corporate moral agency is a fallacy. This implies that talk of corporate moral responsibilities, beyond the mere metaphorical, is essentially meaningless. Part two takes the fallacy of corporate moral agency as its premise and spells out its implications. It shows how prominent normative theories within Corporate Social Responsibility, such as Stakeholder Theory and Social Contract Theory, rest on an implicit assumption of corporate moral agency. In this metaphysical respect such theories are untenable. In order to provide a more robust metaphysical foundation for corporations the book explicates the development of the corporate legal form in the US and UK, which displays how the corporation has come to have its current legal attributes. This historical evolution shows that the corporation is a legal fiction created by the state in order to serve both public and private goals. The normative implication for corporate accountability is that citizens of democratic states ought to primarily make calls for legal enactments in order to hold the corporate legal instruments accountable to their preferences.

'Moralizing the Corporation offers a multi-disciplinary analysis of the conflicts between transnational corporations and transnational advocacy groups. The book is theoretically sophisticated and full of interesting and nuanced empirical findings that generate new knowledge about the relationship between politics and markets. It views transnational corporations as quasi-public institutions and explains their vulnerability to the "non-state authority" of political consumers and protest groups. Holzer develops theory on transnational subpolitics and corporate reflexivity and should be read by scholars and activists alike.' - Michele Micheletti, University of Stockholm, Sweden

This book critically explores how increased regulation and governance of corporations can be used to help improve the rights of workers amidst an era of union decline. The book posits that soft law techniques such as codes of conduct are more effective in protecting workers than "hard law" i.e. domestic regulation. It starts by analysing the transnational regulation of corporations and codes of conduct, and then puts forward a model code of conduct that can be used by corporations to help increase the protection of workers. Through this model's use of a monitoring scheme, shareholders, activists, and NGOs put pressure on the corporation to reform itself and enact a code which has obligations flowing both ways between the corporation and its employees. The book then looks at the expansions of fiduciary duties and changes to corporate governance, including Benefit Corporations and how they can be used to increase the rights of workers. It then discusses changes to standard union contracts before concluding with an assessment of the best way forward for workers’ rights. By providing a new contribution to the current dialogue on corporate social responsibility and codes of conduct, this book will be a valuable resource for academics working on labour, employment, and business law as well as corporate lawyers.

This classic study of ethics in business presents an eye-opening account of how corporate managers think the world works, and how big organizations shape moral consciousness. Robert Jackall takes the reader inside a topsy-turvy world where hard work does not necessarily lead to success, but sharp talk, self-promotion, powerful patrons, and sheer luck might. What sort of everyday rules-in-use do people play by when there are no fixed standards to explain why some succeed and others fail? In the words of one corporate manager, those rules boil down to this maxim: What is right in the corporation is what the guy above you wants from you. Thats what morality is in the corporation. This brilliant, disturbing, funny look at the ethos of the corporate world presents compelling real life stories of the men and women charged with running the businesses of America. This anniversary edition includes an afterword by the author linking the themes of Moral Mazes to the financial tsunami that engulfed the world economy in 2008.