Impact of Corporate Governance and CSR on Sports Management Labor

This report analyzes the impacts of corporate governance, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and codes of conduct within the labor structure and employment in sports management, focusing on the ethical challenges faced by companies like Nike. It examines the exploitation and hazardous conditions experienced by workers in the sports apparel industry, highlighting the failures of anti-sweatshop activism and CSR strategies. The report references key readings, including Ballinger (2008) and Locke et al. (2007), and a 2019 news article discussing the issue of Nike's corporate responsibility following an incident involving Zion Williamson's shoe. It explores the purpose, research approaches, significance, strengths, and weaknesses of the publications, emphasizing the need for improved labor management, ethical earnings, and inclusive workplace policies. The research approach is descriptive, drawing from secondary sources to illustrate the shortcomings of current laws and the importance of prioritizing worker rights and well-being over short-term cost-cutting measures. The study concludes with a call for the enforcement of laws to ensure better worker conditions and ethics.

Running Head: MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
Introduction
This paper attempts to discuss the various impacts of corporate governance, corporate
social responsibility and codes of conduct practiced by the organizations in the domain of
labor structure and employment. It makes note of the hazardous conditions and exploitations
that undergo in both the larger and the medium sized firms while employing people. The
failure of the anti-sweat activism and the corporate social responsibilities or CSR strategies in
the organization like Nike that tried to incorporate self-scrutiny depicts a sad face of the
management system failing to ensure fundamental rights, dignity and self-appalling situations
to the workers (Jamali, Karam, and Blowfield 2017).
Discussion
Purpose:
In the reading, “NO SWEAT? Corporate Social Responsibility and the Dilemma
of Anti-Sweatshop Activism”, Ballinger (2008) tries to focus on how the world’s giant
trader of shoes reportedly abused its workers and over-exploited them by disrespecting their
human rights. However, it has emerged to reduce this by a significant number in the year
2011 from that reported in the year 1991.
Again, in the reading, “Beyond corporate codes of conduct: Work organization
and labour standards at Nike's suppliers”, Locke et al. (2007) depicts the globalization
structure that leads to the development of plagued situations worldwide with child labor,
conditions of hazardous working, poor wages and excessive long working hours, existing
majorly, in the developing nations (Monshipouri, Welch, and Kennedy 2017). Pressures from
the non-governmental organizations (NGOs), trade unions, enforcement of self-devised labor
laws within a country enable these companies to formulate their own “codes of conduct” and
a monitoring system.

2MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
However, according to Lechner (2015), though the demand for sports apparel and
shoes have risen by a considerable number, the earnings of the workers have not; rather, it
has led to overtime and exploitation of workers. Recently, Zion Williamson sprained his knee
after his Nike shoe fell apart (Australian Financial Review 2019). The situation is not
restraining itself to only embarrassment for Nike now but has turned into a situation of
liability for the Company.
Argument:
The paper tries to focus on the fact that Nike did not require a monitoring of 24x7
with ninety-six monitors to check overtime-caused way up in the supply chain by the
manufacturers (Ballinger 2008). This was a kind of scrutinizing behavior by Nike upon its
own structure. Hannah Jones, the top CSR of Nike herself mentioned this when Locke invited
her to the Sloan School in 2005. The idea would rather be welcoming if Nike incentivized its
own suppliers to be a part of the broader decision making process rather than engage in
‘forced overtime.’
Locke et al. (2007) primarily focusses on the supplier compliance or corporate
structure coupled with national regulations, which are again extensively in compliance with
the voluntary and private codes of conduct. Hence, those laid down by the International
Labor Organization (ILO) fails a proper enforcement. Critics argue that these codes of
conduct aim at displacing a rather rigid and thorough government besides the intervention of
the union than protect labor rights or improve working conditions.
Interestingly, the sales have failed to keep the workers at a better position despite the
increase in demand for sportswear in the recent times (Lee, Chelladurai, and Kim 2015). This
is so because their workload has increased significantly but not their pay.

3MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
Significance:
The significance of this paper is that it identifies how the media fame diverted its
attention from the condition of the workers after this adoption of CSR strategies. Even after
fifteen years of ‘anti-sweatshop activism’, the failure was evident as neither the workers not
its consumers were pleased by the initiatives that was undertaken (Ballinger 2008). The given
“default position” of manufacturing, depicting low-skill is a kind of vicious cost cutting
coupled with exploitation. The workers cannot expect anything from their labor unions in the
developed countries for wages or such other benefits. Monitoring teams also fail to develop
satisfactory records for the workers. Nike chose such strategies and invested on CSR, as that
would cost those $20 million than $210 million if they resorted to all the demands put forth
by the workers (Ballinger 2008).
The above study enhances how the various organizations exist but fail to enforce
proper implementation of laws. With the growing number of companies and expanding
economic system, codes of conduct diversify vastly besides the uneven quality of auditing
protocols (Locke et al. 2007). Hence, the lack of a unified governing system and
implementation of laws fail to ensure the rights of the workers. Lechner (2015) brings out the
significance of efficient labor management and benefitting them with the assurance of a pay
that will ensure them to avail necessities, rights and respect in the process of this economic
boom where the Company profits by a considerable amount across nations.
According to the Australian Financial Review, 2019, the lawyer, Paul Edelstein states
that Nike has a chance to be responsible as Williamson injured himself the moment he placed
his foot for a change in direction, causing his left shoe to come apart. Williamson represents
those athletes with brain injury besides other litigations, related to the sports.

4MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
Research Approach:
The research approach is very descriptive and resorts to collection of data from
secondary sources with appropriate references, illustrated as a apart of the referred articles. It
makes a note of the bodies, various policies and laws that ensure to protect the workers’
rights but fail vehemently (Locke et al. 2007).
Conclusion
The studies above depict how efficiency rests at the bottom of the business structure
that is, delivering satisfactory solutions and an affordable living condition for the workers.
Long-term investment plans that benefit the company need emphasis than short-term cost-
cutting plans or investments. Therefore, the study concludes by focusing on the enforcement
of laws aimed at the better upkeep of the workers with respect to ethics and earnings. It is
essential to develop inclusive policies within the framework of occupation in order to boost
the faith and efficiency of a worker (Lechner 2015).

5MANAGEMENT IN SPORTS
References
Australian Financial Review (2019). Nike shoe blow-out might move from embarrassment to
liability case. [online] Australian Financial Review. Available at:
https://www.afr.com/companies/retail/nike-shoe-blowout-might-move-from-embarrassment-
to-liability-case-20190222-h1bl22 [Accessed 24 Aug. 2019].
Ballinger, J., 2008. No sweat? Corporate social responsibility and the dilemma of anti-
sweatshop activism
Jamali, D., Karam, C. and Blowfield, M., 2017. Introduction: Corporate social responsibility
in developing countries: a development-oriented approach. In Development-Oriented
Corporate Social Responsibility: Volume 2. pp. 1-12. Routledge.
Lechner, M. and Sari, N., 2015. Labor market effects of sports and exercise: Evidence from
Canadian panel data. Labour Economics, 35, pp.1-15.
Lee, Y.H., Chelladurai, P. and Kim, Y., 2015. Emotional labor in sports coaching:
Development of a model. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 10(2-3),
pp.561-575.
Locke, R., Thomas, K., Monica, R. and Fei, Q., 2007. Beyond corporate codes of conduct:
Work organization and labour standards at Nike's suppliers
Monshipouri, M., Welch, C.E. and Kennedy, E.T., 2017. Multinational corporations and the
ethics of global responsibility: Problems and possibilities. In Human Rights and
Corporations pp. 123-147. Routledge.