Английский для социологов. Астафурова Т.Н. - 77 стр.

Friedman believes that business has only one social responsibility.
That is ‘to use its resources and energy in activities designed to increase
its profits as long as it stays within the rules of the game ... and
engages in open and free competition, without deception and fraud.’
Friedman says that a business’s social responsibility is ‘to make as
much money for its shareholders as possible’. Another famous person
makes a similar point, Ian MacGregor has been chief executive of
large organisations like British Steel and the National Coal Board. He
says that a business’s first priority is to create wealth. Many companies,
he believes, have a concept of social responsibility which distracts
them from this task.
      It is certainly true that social actions cost money. And businesses
have to bear that cost often by raising prices, lowering wages or
having less profit. Someone has to pay for the social actions in the
end — it may be the customer, the employee or the shareholder.
      Of course, by showing social responsibility, the company may
well benefit in the long run. A spokesman for the Rank-Xerox company
spoke recently of the wide range of social projects Rank-Xerox were
engaged in: grants of equi pment to universities; information technology
projects and seminars: training programmes in universities and schools;
career seminars; sponsorship of art competitions etc.The spokesman
said that the social projects were «an integral part of the company’s
business strategy». They were not some sort of charity work which
would get a brief mention in the company’s annual report. Being a large
organisation, Rank-Xerox had many contacts with government
departments and other groups in society. And, since it was a knowledge-
based company, it needed to hire highly skilled people. Its social
programmes were ‘critical to its success’. There was no doubt that, in
the long run, these activities were profitable to the organisation.
      To what extent is ecology an economic issue or to what extent is
economics an ecological one we shall discuss a little further, in the
article Is Big Business, by Definition, Antagonistic to Nature?




                                  – 77 –