Corporate Social Responsibility and the European Year of Disabled Persons 2003
Date: 10-12-2002 - London
Anna Diamantopoulou European Commissioner responsible for Employment and Social Affairs Address to Europe 21 on CSR and disability
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am delighted to be with you today to review our European approach to Corporate Social Responsibility in general and to thank you for your work in encouraging UK and international companies to get on board the European Year of People with Disabilities. There are two dimensions to CSR that I would particularly like to cover:
- The economic, which concerns the business case, as well as wider ramifications for productivity and economic performance
- And the social, which takes us to the heart of the European Social model, in all its diverse forms.
We are particularly concerned, in the Commission, to see what 'added-value' we can bring from a European perspective: reflecting our European goals and our European ways of doing business, building on the principle of voluntary action and co-operation which is a central ingredient of CSR while facing the obvious need for, and benefits of, some degree of Europe-wide convergence given the pace of continued European integration, on the one hand and the likely impact of the EU's enlargement, on the other.
Compared with the UK, or the US, the notion of CSR has appeared only rather recently on the European map with political interest first seriously aroused at the Lisbon Summit in March 2000 when the EU's political leaders set a new strategic goal for the Union - of becoming the most inclusive and competitive society in the world and when they made it clear that economic growth, competitiveness, and social justice are mutually reinforcing objectives.
Since that date, of course, we have had a rather bumpy ride. Economic performance has not been bad overall. Europe as a whole has created over 6 million jobs, mostly good quality jobs with a majority of them being taken up by women.
But we have also had the roller-coaster ride of new technology which seriously dented business confidence. And then we had the Enron, et al, affairs which likewise dented public confidence.
Now, as we approach the end of 2002, we face worrying uncertainties about our economic prospects over the year ahead and while it is unlikely that we will lose much of our overall gains we have made in terms of jobs and incomes, we must be concerned that a worsening economic climate could undermine the willingness of companies to take up, or maintain, a broad CSR perspective, when making difficult short-term decisions.
Which argues, of course, for building the business case for CSR on sound financial arguments, and not just moral pressure: developing robust CSR practices fit for bad times, as well as good, ensuring that CSR is not just seen as a 'fair weather' policy, but as an integral part of longer-term company strategies, recognising that responsible businesses find it easier to attract both investment funds and a quality workforce and that 'responsible companies will be tomorrow's profitable companies', to quote President Prodi.
This brings me to the social aspects of CSR which are not, of course, to be found in a separate box. Since social policies play a central role in all successful, high performance, economies whether we look at the positive contributions that social investments such as education, training and health make to raising levels of productivity and growth or whether we look at the savings that timely social support interventions can bring to ensure that short-term problems for the individual - like job-loss or illness - do not turn into long-run costs and burdens for society as a whole.
Which is why although people do not always believe it the United States and the UK spend just as much of their national incomes on social policies as the Scandinavians or the Germans around 30 per cent, including education, or 24 per cent without.
But CSR is not just an issue of social policy and here I would like to be clear that, for me and the rest of the Commission, CSR does not, in any way, represent a drift back towards the 'corporatism' of the post-war years. CSR is fundamentally different. And has to reflect the guiding principles of sound economic and social policies in the 21st century. Namely:
- Respect for basic rights human, social and equality.
- The maintenance and modernisation of the European social model, in all its diverse forms.
- And the pursuit of the kinds of economic competitiveness and social inclusion goals agreed by European heads of state at the Lisbon European Council.
In that broad policy context, basic rights are absolute, and need to be defended by law as do basic minimum standards but other goals are more aspirational giving us direction and purpose, operating over and beyond the legal framework.
In other words, we are looking to companies like all other sections of society - to at least respect legal rights and minimum standards and to do more whenever possible whether they do this out of 'enlightened self interest' as Adam Smith might have argued, or whether they do it in pursuit of more elevated goals.
On this point, I think you are probably aware that, outside of this room perhaps even inside this room there are some who believe that, unless I keep the threat of EU legislation 'up my sleeve', we will never make progress on CSR at European level.
Well that is not my view certainly not at the present point in time. CSR is not about threats hidden or otherwise. On the other hand, the voluntary nature of CSR does not mean that there will never be any further legislative proposals affecting the conduct of businesses in the context of the internal market, consumer protection, or environmental policy.
Where standards need to be raised, then the Commission will always be ready to act but we cannot expect to make the world a better place only through legislation. Which is why we are putting the policy emphasis on CSR very much on open and constructive dialogue, involving all actors with responsibilities so as to spread the message, identify issues of concern, and improve the quality, credibility and effectiveness of CSR tools.
This is the task of the Multi-Stakeholder Forum, which we have set up following our Green Paper on CSR last year, and our policy paper earlier this year. We have asked the Forum to look at ways in which the EU can be most helpful in facilitating the exchange of experiences, in improving knowledge on CSR, in promoting convergence and transparency on CSR instruments and practices as well as on the value of techniques like codes of conduct, social accounting, labels, social partners agreements and so on.Now I know that there are mixed views about this sort of multi-dimensional body and there are some who would dismiss the whole thing as 'just another talking shop'. Only time will tell. But we have given the group a clear and well-defined mandate and a clear first deadline of mid-2004. So we have good expectations that they will focus on ways of addressing common concerns, and not just 'papering over the cracks' of different points of view.
We like to see CSR as a win-win approach not a zero-sum game in which one party gains at another's expense. And, in 2004, the Commission will look at the results from the Forum and see how best to take the initiatives forward recognising the triple market risks facing companies who fail to live up to the challenge:
- The risk that customers will not want to buy their products or services
- The risk that employees will not want to work for them
- The risk that investors will not want to put money into their businesses
Which is why I want to promote the message that socially responsible behaviour pays off for business as much as other stakeholders, and society as a whole.
This brings me to my final words of thanks for your help in respect of the European Year of People with Disabilities which provides the perfect opportunity to put into practice all the principles I mentioned in relation to responsible corporate behaviour generally. Productive societies are those that invest in the skill, competence and ability of all their people.
This is sound business and economics recognising that people with disabilities are a vast pool of talent, waiting to be tapped, waiting to be empowered. They are not 'too costly', or 'less reliable' or 'too much hassle to employ' - as studies show.
Recognising the need to use all our human resources to the full. Given the growing pressures on the welfare state, on the one hand and the acute skill shortages in many regions and sectors, on the other against the background of a progressively ageing population across Europe, including the candidate countries.
It is part of my policy responsibility as European Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs to work to help improve the situation of people with disabilities. Working on several fronts to fight discrimination and to promote the employment of the 2 to 3.5 million disabled people who we estimate could potentially be re-integrated into the workforce in Europe.
What we seek is an inclusive European society open and accessible for each individual citizen with full and equal rights to participate in all aspects of social, economic and political life.
Using public policies to promote the rights of disabled people in respect of diverse issues from transport to education. Using new technologies to the advantage of people with disabilities, who stand to gain a lot from more flexible forms of work and work organisation, exploiting in particular the potential of 'assistive technologies' where the products and services are estimated to represent a market of over 10 billion euros, and growing by some 10-20 percent a year.
At the same time, in the context of equal chances in the workplace, the EU has put in place a Directive on employment and occupation to combat discrimination against workers and job seekers on the grounds of disability, as well as ethnic origin, religious belief, sexual orientation, and age. These new rules provide us with a clear legal framework to protect disabled job applicants, or employees, from unfair treatment. For example, the Directive clearly states that all workplaces should reasonably accommodate the needs of disabled people.
These new rules are due to be integrated into national law by the end of next year so the Commission will be busy over the next 12 months monitoring their implementation. Hence the European Year will be a great opportunity for businesses to prepare the ground for the actual implementation of the new EU Directive with respect to disabilities.
But it is also an opportunity to go further: to recruit and integrate more workers with disabilities, to exchange best practice and experiences with other firms, to look at ways of investing in the local community where they operate.
Overall, the European Year of People with Disabilities is an excellent opportunity to raise awareness and understanding of the needs, priorities and potential of people with disabilities; to focus on the ability behind the disability.
The European Commission is providing an overall framework, guidelines, and some financial support but we want the motivation for the Year to come from the grassroots with a large number of activities planned so far across the Union nationally, regionally and, above all, locally.
The UK will kick off the Year with a launch event here in London on 22 January with £1.3 million allocated by the UK authorities and the Commission to support projects across the UK.
Driving forward the political agenda for full integration of people with disabilities raising awareness, and sustaining it for the future. Drawing attention to the many barriers that exist for people with disabilities. Finding ways to overcome those barriers through new approaches and methods and putting positive and workable measures and policies in place.
By building on a strong alliance of the various stakeholders, I believe that the Year will help break down barriers, and open doors, for the disabled population of Europe helping us work towards true equality of access and participation for all Europe's citizens.
I would like to thank you for help in preparing the year ahead. And I am happy to reply to any questions you have concerning both CSR in general, or our specific work on disabilities.