CASE STUDY [30 Marks] Walmart Case Study - Corporate social responsibility Walmart Supercentres (hereafter Walmart) has a full offering of groceries and general merchandise in a single store. Walmart offers to its customers a one-stop shopping experience and is the largest private employer in the US as well as being the world's largest retailer. Walmart is able to use its contractual relationships to regulate behaviour among its suppliers around the globe with respect to product quality. working conditions for the suppliers' employees, and ethical conduct. Since 2007 Walmart publishes its annual report on its website. It was initially called the 'Global Sustainability Report' and later changed to 'Global Responsiblity Report' in 2011. The change reflects the new social and environmental dimensions Walmart added to their efforts. Walmart to be the retail leader in the market communicates the significant progress made by and the new reduction goals of greenhouse gas emissions of its supply chain by 2015 . Walmart's financial contributions in kind, such as investments in education, health, commitments to fight hunger, support for local farmers and access to healthier and affordable food, can also be found in Walmart's Global Responsibility Report 2011. In 2005 there were press publications accusing Walmart's suppliers in Bangladesh of using child labour. In the court case Walmart Stores Inc. v. Dukes et al., it was alleged that female employees in Waimart retail stores were discriminated against based on their gender, regarding pay and job promotion. The 2005 Report on Ethical Sourcing reported that Waimart had ceased to do business with 141 factories, primarily because of underage labour violations. Walmart's 2005 and 2012 Code of Conduct (COC) 'Standard for Suppliers' explicitly establish that Walmart would not tolerate the use of child labour. It also specifies non-discrimination on the basis of gender and other personal characteristics or beliefs. Currently. Walmart publishes a full and complete report on CSR issues called 'Global Responsibility Report' which covers the three dimensions of 'People, Planet, Profit'. This report emphasizes gender equality and a diverse workforce. Walmart has also committed itself to achieving three goals in its Sustainability Report: using 100% renewable energy, creating zero waste, and selling products that sustain people and the environment. Read the case study above and answer ALL the questions below. Answer ALL the questions in this section. Question 1 (15 Marks) "Interplay between economic, political, and social activities creates an environment in which businesses operate." Explain what is the business-government-society (BGS) field. Discuss its importance and how the BGS field affects a company. Refer to the case study and motivate whether Walmart is today using the Market Capitalism BGS Model. Question (15 Marks) Define corporate social responsibility and explain the two (2) CSR theories. Refer to the case study and motivate which view of CSR is adopted by Walmart
