Development of the concept of social responsibility
In recent years, the standard of social responsibility has been widely mentioned. However, it is a very new standard in our country. The number of enterprises that have already received ISO 26000 certification is no more than 10. Until now, quality and cost elements have always been at the forefront of competition. However, in recent years, to operate in line with morality and to have social responsibilities have started to be among the important elements of competition. In addition to this, non-governmental organizations have become increasingly strong thanks to the developing communication technologies and have been effective in establishing the concept of social responsibility in enterprises.
Other factors are also effective in the development of the concept of social responsibility. Namely,
- Further transfer of labor-intensive old technologies to the developing countries, which leads to the deterioration of the ecological balance
- Increased pressures on international businesses that have fled the legal regulations of developed countries and aim to make long-lasting investments using cheap labor
These factors are very effective in the emergence of the ISO 26000 standard. As is known, ISO 9001 standard aims at the responsibility of enterprises to provide more reliable and quality products to their customers. In addition, the ISO 14001 standard regulates the responsibilities towards the natural environment. The OHSAS 18001 standard focuses on employers' occupational health and safety responsibilities.
The Social Accountability 8000 standard was published by the International Organization for Social Responsibility in October 8000. Trade unions, human rights and children's rights organizations, employers and academics also contributed to the publication of this standard. The main purpose of this standard is to guarantee the rights of employees. The International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions, the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child have been taken into consideration when preparing the standard. In short, the SA 1997 standard covers social responsibilities towards employers, suppliers, customers and society.
Social responsibility refers to the obligation of businesses to protect and improve the environment in which they operate. The SA 8000 standard guarantees ethical rules in the production of goods and services.
What is ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System?
The International Standards Organization (ISO) published the ISO 2010 Social Responsibility Management System standard based on the Social Responsibility standard (SA 8000 standard) in 26000. This standard is applicable not only to private sector companies but also to public sector organizations. Businesses in any sector, including non-governmental organizations, can establish and implement this system regardless of their size.
Businesses that meet the requirements of the ISO 26000 standard make progress in many areas such as superiority in competition, meeting the expectations and needs of customers, increasing the reputation and efficiency of the business, increasing consumer confidence, improving relations with suppliers and subcontractors and improving employee motivation.
Today, in the definition and implementation of the concept of social responsibility, different opinions are put forward and various discussions are held. While the mission, vision and value commitments of the companies include the expressions of social responsibility, many companies design social responsibility projects and take concrete steps. The ISO 26000 standard published in such an environment is really a guide to eliminate this confusion.
The ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System is the first official document to agree on social responsibility definitions and practices. The ISO 26000 standard is applicable not only to private sector organizations but also to enterprises of all sizes and sectors from public institutions and non-governmental organizations. The aim of this system is to achieve sustainable development. The goal of all social responsibility projects is to achieve sustainable development. The ISO 26000 standard allows organizations claiming to be socially responsible to implement this principle and reflect it in their business processes.
The ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System is entirely voluntary and does not have an audit and certification process as in other ISO standards. This was followed by the private sector not to use this standard as a marketing tool. As such, this system can be implemented by businesses that really want to carry out projects with a sense of social responsibility and structure their business processes in line with these principles.
In this way, the ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System is not an alternative to and supports the following social responsibility activities:
- International Labor Organization (ILO)
- United Nations Global Compact
- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
- Global Reporting Initiative
ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System What Does Business Gain?
The ISO 26000 standard is structured under seven main headings:
- Organizational governance
- Human rights
- Running applications
- Environment
- Fair work practices
- Consumer issues
- Social participation and development
Under these headings, the processes to determine and implement the activities that the enterprise should perform are explained. These processes have to be determined based on their own values and fields of activity. In this regard, each enterprise has to prepare the relevant processes under these headings when setting up the ISO 26000 standard.
The benefits of the system can be summarized as follows:
- Businesses gain superiority over their competitors in the sector
- The brand value and reputation of the business increases in the sector
- Business wins new customers, creates loyalty in existing customers
- The morale of the employees increases and their loyalty increases.
- At the same time the productivity of employees and the business increases
- Investors, sponsors, financial groups and shareholders' perspective of the business changes
- Enhances business communication with authorities, media, competitors and customers
ISO 26000 Social Responsibility Management System has the following principles: to be responsible, to be transparent, to act ethically, to respect the expectations and rights of customers, to comply with legal regulations, to comply with international codes of conduct and to respect human rights.
Today, environmental sensitivity, low cost, quality products and safety issues are vital for businesses. However, with the ISO 26000 standard, it is an important condition to compete in the same way that social responsibility and ethical activities are performed.
