Employee Attitudes on Corporate Social Responsibility at the Frontline Level of an Energy Transportation Company

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) reflects the commitment businesses voluntarily undertake to integrate ethical behaviors and societal matters within their operating contexts, decision-making processes, strategies and corporate values while simultaneously maximizing economic objectives. As large firms embrace and integrate the principles of CSR into their business practices, company personnel will likely be expected to show actions that are linked to conveyed corporate values and related policies. This words-to-action progression, an inevitability when mainstreaming a concept, will heighten credibility and perceived CSR commitment amongst the relevant stakeholders of the corporation. It also presents the firm with an opportunity to heighten the alignment between corporate values and personal attitudes of its employees, which can be beneficial from an attraction and retention point of view. To enhance the likelihood that employees at the frontline level will accept these principles and become engaged with these values, it is important to quantify and understand their attitudes towards the social responsibility construct itself. It is also relevant to examine whether certain workplace factors and individual characteristics may impact their viewpoints. This research study evaluated whether the variables of work climate perception, education level, and age directly influenced one’s corporate social responsibility perspective. The research method selected to gather data was the survey approach, which used a structured questionnaire. The developed survey was based to a large extent on existing instruments available in literature. One type of survey was used for workplace climate perceptions and a second type was used for CSR attitudes (orientation). Demographic information was also collected within the survey. A case study is presented, which is based on a survey of frontline personnel employed by a North American energy transportation company (Enbridge Inc.). Survey development is described, analysis methods are explained, and results are presented with statistical measures to verify hypotheses related to the CSR attitudes of employees. The implications of the findings are discussed from a business strategy perspective, along with the limitations of the study and suggestions for future research.