Social Responsibility in Mining Industry: Factors and Tactics for Managers

The report explores generally how mining industry practise and carry out its social responsibility. It reveals that social responsibility is associated with every business sector. The impact of the mining extraction that leads to generation of metal minerals varies as per the type of material used and which metal is being extracted. The report also discusses factors that can undermine social responsibility performance and tactics a manager can use to avoid them.

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Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................3
Main points of the argument.................................................................................................................3
Applies to mining industry.....................................................................................................................4
Factors that can undermine social responsibility performance.............................................................4
Tactics a manager can use to avoid the factors.....................................................................................6
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................7
References.............................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
The purpose of the report is to explore generally how mining industry practise and carry out
its social responsibility. The report also explores the social responsibility in the mining
industry and the association between environment and CSR, quality management system and
safety. Mining industry has been focusing and adopting these measures in the last decade.
The report also reveals that social responsibility is associated with every business sector
(Epstein, 2018).
The mining sector is more concerned because the extraction process leads to threatening of
the species. Historically, the mining sector has been considered as a ruining attitude as the
impact of its operation without the social legitimacy can cause devastation and leave the areas
when they use it and exhaust all the economically valuable resources completely for their
benefit. Nevertheless, cost benefit language has become a common excuse the damage caused
in a particular place because ultimately it is ignored in the blind visions of overall financial
profits (Asmeri, Alvionita, and Gunardi, 2017).
Main points of the argument
Social responsibility is a framework that suggests an organisation or industry to perform the
business activities under the obligation to act in such a way, which would benefit the
society. Social responsibility is an obligation that every individual performs to maintain a
balance between the environment and the economy (Asmeri, Alvionita, and Gunardi, 2017).
It is to be noted that several species are threatened from the fear of extinction. The entire
ecosystem is being affected by the mining due to constant exploitation of resources. It is
often seen that there is a lack of practising CSR because of gap between actual
implementation and stated intentions. The practical response and commitment to general

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policies are not very frequently executed on the workplace. Mining industry utilises the
natural resources to operate the extraction process (Sharma, and Bhatnagar, 2016).
Mining industry is more inclined to conduct and act according to the formal code of ethics
and social responsibility. The CSR (corporate social responsibility) programmes of the
mining sector focuses on initiatives that can have positive impact on social, environmental,
and economic level (Welker, 2016).
Applies to mining industry
It is admitted that extractive industries usually are in the forefront in practising CSR. Social
responsibility is important in the mining sector. The new business approach of focusing on
social responsibility has great importance for the economy of the country. Several group of
activities related to extraction of minerals and exploration under the earth`s surface disturbs
the ecosystem. A chain of environmental problems is found to occur that affect the mineral
resources such as water and life (Narula, Magray, and Desore, 2017).
The impact of the mining extraction that leads to generation of metal minerals varies as per
the type of material used and which metal is being extracted. The negative impact on
environment can be irrevocable because once non-renewable resources are exploited. It can
cause destruction and pollution, regardless of identifying the metal mineral. Minerals are
generally found in amalgams with various chemical elements in it. It is necessary to use
some important chemicals such as mercury, sodium, cyanide. These elements are polluting
to both environment and water (Hussainey, Elsayed, and Razik, 2011).
Moreover, mining sectors transport precious metals such as gold and silver, which leads to
contamination of ground water due to use of cadmium for extraction. Even if legal
authorities undertake the responsibility to lessen the impact, it will still affect the
environment. It is important to take an sustainable approach to develop and associate three

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dimensions such as the environment, social component, and economic component.
Moreover, it is important to apply ethical, community, and financial principles that includes
the concept of CSR as an instrument to create value among the stakeholders, achieve
viability and sustainability in mining areas (Buchanan and Marques, 2018).
Factors that can undermine social responsibility
performance
Business executives has been facing complex strategic allocation of resources that cannot
achieved only by achieving the financial outcome. Nevertheless, it is important to measure
societal and stakeholder expectations. Social and environmental factors has increasing
influence on corporate strategy. A commitment to execute social responsibility will
contribute to sustainable economic development towards working with the employees, local
communities and families. The factors depend on various work conditions such as job
satisfaction, variables of remuneration, and security issues (Yakovleva, 2017). Several factors
depend on the available project such project team relationship, material resources, project
size and project duration. More factors are considered when the variables is concerned for the
company size, project size, project duration, project team relationship, and level of authority
and types of clients that the company have. There are number of barriers when CSR is to be
implemented. These barriers can be either firm specific or sector-specific. Company specific
factors are the micro factors that are heterogeneous. The impact of CSR implementation
differs from organisation to organisation (Epstein, 2018).
Moreover, when the company is unable to perform its CSR activities. There are ways to
resolve its CSR implementation by influencing, controlling, and managing the fund and affect
the employee`s behaviour by change management or transforming the firm`s culture and
leadership. The mining sector as a whole faces the problem of implementing of CSR at macro
level. This industry do not show their willingness to pay for the CSR activities. CSR can help

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as a qualifier when price and logistics performance are well performed. To transport the
metal minerals, the sector requires efficient transport system, service quality, which focuses
the CSR as the secondary concern. Moreover, maritime transportation sector has been facing
problem from the manufacturer at cost effective manner as it is interpreted as cheapest mode
of transport. Nevertheless, it is not at all healthy for the marine species. In order to reduce the
cost, the sector uses the heavy marine transport system that hampers the marine life. There
is a direct relationship between quality of metal mineral and the transportation it uses
(Faircheallaigh, 2017).
High- regulatory standards- In the recent decade, the mining sector is being highly keep into
observation whether it is exploiting the resources all around without taking any preservation
methods or taking some preventive measures especially regarding human safety that is
hampered during the extraction process. The smoke exposed through mining and extraction
processes can be dangerous for the human eye as well as it can causer respiration problems.
In addition to this, the role of environmental and safety performances have been constantly
raising. This lead to formation of new regulation, to force the sector to cope with CSR
standards (Kiessling, Isaksson, and Yasar, 2016).
Tactics a manager can use to avoid the factors
The tactics developed can be influencing only if the manager keep associating the CSR
successful impressions of certain examples. Canadian tire and royal Bank revealed that how
these rating is managed. The score is based on six criteria such as community and society,
customers, employees, human rights, corporate governance, and natural environment. As far
as Australian mining sector is concerned, a manager should focus on the area in which they
are operating, as the indigenous or non-indigenous people of Australia should not be in
danger. It should not have negative impact on local communities, aboriginal losses, and

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public concern over the operation of extraction process (Ross, 2016). Regarding corporate
governance, a manager should have thorough knowledge of corporate governance, which is
to be followed in his industry. If these regulations are not fulfilled, a manager have to
acknowledge the excessive compensation. To form any strategies to serve the customer well,
it includes such product that do not contain any of the substance like cadmium, sulphate.
Moreover, as these mineral metals are extracted from amalgams, it should be clean when
served if as a sample to a customer (Yuen and Lim, 2016).

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Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that mining sector in Australia was no longer
applying any form CSR activities in its operations. Nevertheless, in recent times, mining
sector has realised the importance of different dangerous procedures and their implication on
environmental and social factors. In addition to this, it has contributed the awareness and
importance of CSR implementation as a corporate strategy. Policy makers make the policies
to provide help to mining sector in implementing CSR. The procedure of how mining has
affected the environment is elaborated efficiently. The turmoil that have affected the
environment severely. The act of using the resources in such a way that using them abruptly
can exhaust the wildlife. The manager forms the tactics and strategies to increase the
awareness of CSR implementation in the organisation.

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References
Asmeri, R., Alvionita, T. and Gunardi, A., (2017) CSR disclosures in the mining industry:
Empirical evidence from listed mining firms in Indonesia. Indonesian Journal of
Sustainability Accounting and Management, 1(1), pp. 16-22.
Buchanan, S. and Marques, J.C., (2018) How home country industry associations influence
MNE international CSR practices: Evidence from the Canadian mining industry. Journal of
World Business, 53(1), pp. 63-74.
Epstein, M. J., (2018) Making sustainability work: Best practices in managing and
measuring corporate social, environmental and economic impacts. US: Routledge.
Hussainey, K., Elsayed, M., and Razik, M. A. (2011) Factors affecting corporate social
responsibility disclosure in Egypt. Corporate Ownership & Control, 8(4-4), pp. 432-443.
Kiessling, T., Isaksson, L. and Yasar, B., (2016) Market orientation and CSR: Performance
implications. Journal of Business Ethics, 137(2), pp. 269-284.
Narula, S.A., Magray, M.A. and Desore, A., (2017) A sustainable livelihood framework to
implement CSR project in coal mining sector. Journal of Sustainable Mining, 16(3), pp.83-
93.
Faircheallaigh, C. (2017) CSR, the mining industry and Indigenous peoples in Australia and
Canada: From cost and risk minimisation to value creation and sustainable development. In
Innovative CSR, US: Routledge.
Ross, D., (2016) Corporate social responsibility initiatives in Australia is mining industry: An
applied stakeholder approach. In Key Initiatives in Corporate Social Responsibility. UK:
Springer.

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Sharma, D. and Bhatnagar, P. (2016) Corporate Social Responsibility of Mining Industries.
Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2407014 [Accessed on 19/09/18]
Welker, M. (2016) No Ethnographic Playground: Mining Projects and Anthropological
Politics. A Review Essay. Comparative Studies in Society and History, 58(2), pp.577-586.
Yakovleva, N. (2017) Corporate social responsibility in the mining industries. US:
Routledge.
Yuen, K. F., and Lim, J. M. (2016) Barriers to the Implementation of Strategic. Corporate
Social Responsibility in Shipping. 32(1), pp. 49-57.