CSR in Switzerland

CSR in Switzerland
Lukas Beglinger, Ambassador of Switzerland to Poland
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/poland
CSR in Switzerland: an old tradition
Origin of CSR in Switzerland: industrialisation epoch of 19th century
1877 Federal Factory
Law
beginning of labor
legislation
Swiss Pioneers
Hans Caspar
Escher
1970s: International
initiatives (MNE
Guidelines OECD,
UNCTAD)
1950s: Beginning of
environmental
legislation
2009 : CSR Concept
(SECO)
1990s : Private
voluntary initiatives
1999 UN Global
Compact
Gottlieb
Duttweiler
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
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Framework conditions concerning CSR
Absence of a dedicated national CSR policy, but CSR is addressed in social
and environmental legislation
Liberal Values
Protective social
and labor laws
Strong
environmental
legislation
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
•
Specific framework conditions with CSR
elements
e.g. public procurement: inclusion of social
criteria (such as ILO Core Convention)
•
Compared to other European countries,
Switzerland has less governmental CSR
requirements
e.g. no requirements on sustainability
reporting
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How advanced are Swiss companies in CSR?
Many Swiss companies have adopted CSR concepts, some are outstanding
examples of best practices
Large
Companies
• Actively plan and implement
CSR policies
• Strong focus on
environmental issues
SMEs
• Do not use CSR terminology,
but apply specific CSR aspects
• Systematization of CSR efforts
is planned
1• Coop and Migros: the most sustainable retailers (best
Oekom rating worldwide 2011)
Some
CSR pioneers
2• Switcher: Textile firm / sustainable supply chain
management is fully integrated into business model
3• Mobility: the only nationwide car-sharing organization
4• Kuoni (Tour operator): combines mainstream sustainability
criteria (Travelife) with high end fair trade tourism products
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
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Swiss participation in important CSR initiatives
ISO 26000
52 reports registered
UN Global Compact
85 companies
(2011)
First companies
start to work with
new standard
(2011)
Swiss tour operator
Kuoni relies on
Travelife
ISO 14000
Guidelines for MNEs
National
contact point
(SECO)
Around 1900
certified
companies in
2008
SA 8000
Not a success in
Switzerland, is more suited
to supply chain abroad
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
Business Social
Compliance Initiative
Important players (e.g. main
retailers are part of BSCI),
in total 31 members
Switzerland: champion
for fair trade
products : 50% of
banana sales, 5% of
coffee sales
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CSR promotion and awareness raising
NGOs
Educational Bodies
• Promote CSR through their
activities
Role
• Pressure large companies to
adopt CSR behaviour
• Develop CSR programs and
trainings for leaders
• Ensure transparency to
consumers
Examples
• Oebu and Philias promote
sustainable corporate
management
• Solidarsuisse campaigns for
fair trade and coffee
• University of applied science
Zürich and Lucerne
• University of Geneva
• University of St. Gallen
Websites; www.oebu.ch, www.philias.org, www.neosys.ch, www.bsd-net.com
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
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Major Upcoming Challenges in CSR for Switzerland
Equal Gender Opportunities
1
• men gain 19% more than women in equal positions (BFS
2008); women represent only 14.7% in leading positions
• work-life balance to be improved
Burnout / Stress
2
• 8% increase in stressed people at work between 2000 -2010
• 21% of employees feel emotionally burned out
• 4 billion CHF per year due to burn-out at work (SECO 2010)
Energy Efficiency
3
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
• planned long-term exit of nuclear power generation
• expected increase of energy prices
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Conclusions
Results
 long experience combining CSR approach and international
competitiveness
 pioneering role in specific fields such as fair trade, recycling, car
sharing, tourism, food, pharmaceutics and education
Challenges
 Better integration of women in high positions / equal opportunities
 Decrease of stress and burn-out syndromes at work
 Concrete actions for sustainable development and climate
protection at corporate level
www.swiss-contribution.admin.ch/
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Dziękuję za uwagę!
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