Business Ethics in Australia: Woolworths' CSR and Governance Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Woolworths' business ethics, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and corporate governance practices. It begins with an introduction to Woolworths, its history, and core values, followed by an examination of ethical dilemmas, particularly the underpayment of employees. The report delves into Woolworths' ethical sourcing policies, including labor rights and living wages, and evaluates its CSR initiatives, focusing on diversity, gender equality, and support for indigenous employment. It also examines Woolworths' response to underpayment issues and includes a personal recommendation for employee feedback. The report concludes by emphasizing Woolworths' commitment to ethical practices and social responsibility, highlighting its initiatives in various areas such as people, planet, and prosperity, while also mentioning relevant references.

Assignment 2: Business Ethics
Woolworths

Introduction
 To analyse the business ethics, the report sheds
light on the corporate social responsibility and
corporate governance to derive an insight about
how these two areas are being addressed
 The major purpose of the report is to derive a
comprehensive insight about the business ethics
and its application to business
 Ethical practices applied by businesses are often
filled with public controversies due to clashes in
public opinion, laidback attitude of the
organization itself in relation to performing the
social and ethical duties and poor initiatives
taken for the same

Introductory notes
 Woolworth’s business practices and
ethics have been the fundamental
context of the report
 Business ethics is a specific set of
policies along with some relevant
practices that usually deal with the
controversial subjects with the
inclusion some controversial subjects.
This broad series of subjects may
include corporate governance, insider
training, corporative governance,
corporate social responsibility and
some other relevant aspects

Company Background and History
 Introduction of the company: Woolworths
 It is noted that Woolworths is known to be Australia’s biggest supermarket along with
the establishment its 995 stores across the nation across Australia
 Woolworths is a large chain of supermarkets and grocery in Australia that are
significantly owned by Woolworths group Organization was founded in 1924 along with
Coles
 This supermarket chain accounts 80% of Australian supermarket

Background Notes
 The overall workforce strength of
Woolworths is 100,000 (Aguinis & Glavas,
2012). According to Devin and According to
Devin and Richards (2018) Woolworths is a
diverse group of retail businesses with the
aim of becoming a purpose-driven
organisation. The core values of
Woolworths is aligned with three different
core aspects like care deeply, performing the
right thing and learn. In present, the firm
pay its attention to major growth drivers
like providing desirable outcome for
consumers, team and enhance the core
values.

History of Woolworths
 Woolworths first started its journey in 1924 with its varieties of
stores which is known as Woolworths Stupendous Bargaining
Basement
 The organization its chain of services with five dime stores in
USA.
 Woolworth went ahead opening another new branch and within
six years of establishment, Woolworths’ business was able to
build 16 store new stores

Contd…
 After the launches of food
section in Woolworths acquired
32 BCC (Brisbane Cash &
Carry).
 Woolworths Limited in 1982
acquired two different stores in
Tasmania such as Reolf Vos and
Purity. This was further in
converted into Woolworth store
(Lund-Thomsen & Lindgreen,
2014)

Ethical Dilemma of Woolworth
 Woolworths has underpaid its economically lower class labour
 Almost 6000 of its employees are paid less (Dominic Powell,
2020).
 The people who are immigrants working as the ground staff at
Woolworths are not paid as per the industry wage standards
 Onrganization exhibited a poor governance as well as
complacency carelessness towards employee entitlement (Dos
Santos, Svensson & Padin, 2013).

Ethical dilemma
 The organization has failed to pay about 5700 of its salaried workers
especially the departmental managers
 The underpayment can be tracked back as far as 2010 and the
organization estimates the overall cost of remediation to be between
$200 million and $300 billion
 Share of Woolworths dropped following this controversy which seemed
to be closing down to 1.4% at $37.20 (Parkinson, 2016)

Business Ethics
 Woolworths’ ethical sourcing policies
 To enhance flexible working conditions for the people working in
the supply chain network
 All suppliers of Woolworths irrespective of the regions operating across
the globe are subject to the policy
 Protect the corporate image and rely on brands by doing the right thing
 Policies are significantly complemented by compliance audit programs for
the own products of suppliers

Contd…
 Even though the ethical policy of Woolworths encompasses the labour rights
but in practice the organization is falling short to meet the commitment if the
recent underpayment issues of immigrants labours are taken into account
(Methner, 2013).
 Woolworths is one such organisation in which Ethical Sourcing Policy
embraces as well as enacts United Nation Global Compact (UNGC)
 Policy focuses on communicating a clear set of requirements for the suppliers
and work to
 Improve existing working conditions for the employees in its supply chain

Adherence to international labour standards and national
legislation
 Labour rights
 Under the norms, employment is chosen freely and the terms condemn the forced or any kind
of involuntary prison labour when they are not followed properly
 Worker are entitled to incur debt via recruitment fees, fines and other possible means
 Employees may not necessarily deposit their identity papers with the employer and they can
leave the contract after the mentioned notice
 Employees are free to leave the workplace when the shift timing is over