The federal government has recently signalled that it is considering creating a federal Corporate Social Responsibility ("CSR") Ombudsperson. This person would investigate allegations of wrongdoing by Canadian corporations acting abroad.
There have been allegations of human rights and other abuses perpetrated by Canadian companies, particularly those in the resource extraction industry, in their global operations.
Currently, a federal CSR Counsellor exists to assist people to "reduce and to constructively resolve conflict between project-affected communities and Canadian extractive sector companies outside of Canada." In essence, the CSR counsellor provides advice and dispute resolution assistance when Canadian companies in the extractive resource industry have been accused of improper or illegal behaviour in their overseas operations.
The current approach has been criticized, due in part—at least in its earlier iteration—to the limited authority of the CSR Counsellor and the voluntary nature of the mechanisms at the office's disposal.
CSR is a somewhat nebulous concept that encourages voluntary actions by corporations to recognize and mitigate their impact on social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Often, CSR is implemented through the adoption by companies of voluntary codes such as the Equator Principles (for global banks engaging in project finance) or the Responsible Care programme (for companies in the chemical industry).
CSR seeks ultimately to facilitate shift corporate culture so that companies recognize the value of creating, and take steps to create, economic value in ways that also create value for society and the environment. Global Affairs Canada has defined it as " voluntary activities undertaken by a company to operate in an economic, social and environmentally sustainable manner."
The very notion of CSR has been subject to critique for almost as long as it has existed. This criticism is often because it is voluntary, non-binding, and difficult to enforce.
As part of its election campaign, the Federal Liberal Party indicated it would create a CSR Ombudsperson, and it will be interesting to see what ultimately is, or is not, implemented.
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