Levi Strauss Essay

The inquiry we are asked in this instance survey is whether or non we would purchase portions of stock in Levi Strauss cognizing that its directors are willing to merchandise off some economic efficiency to run harmonizing to their corporate position of what is “ethical” . On the surface. it appears that Levi Strauss & A ; Co. upholds the highest ethical criterions. However. what is ethical to some may non needfully be ethical to others.

Like any concern. Levi Strauss strives to place themselves good in the heads of stakeholders and they have maintained their good name and place in the market. “The company’s attack to ethical direction is every bit familiar to concern leaders as its denims are to teenagers” ( Jackson. Schuler. & A ; Werner. 2012. p. [ Page 69 ] ) . Levi Strauss unmistakably has a distinguishable company civilization in that they provide strong guidelines for how their employees should move. Their company values include empathy. originality. unity and bravery. These values direct how employees are to be treated and how they are expected to handle others.

Empathy means to hold compassion. originality means to do every attempt to be advanced and alone. unity means to hold strong moral rules. and bravery agencies to be courageous and stand for what you believe is right. These are impressive values for any company to presume! Along with these extraordinary values. Levi Strauss takes “an active function in international trade. labour. environmental sustainability. [ and ] nondiscrimination” ( Bergh. 2014 ) . Part of the strategic importance of pull offing human resources is fulfilling multiple stakeholders. Levi Strauss is visibly working hard to make that. If you take a expression at their web site. they appear to be one of the most socially responsible companies in the universe! The company is represented as socially responsible leaders in the community.

The web site is formatted to do it easy for users to happen a huge sum of information about their ethical patterns and sustainability ( Bergh. 2014. ) . and their denims and other merchandises. good they speak for themselves! At Levi Strauss economic globalisation is an of import factor in the external environment. Labor markets and state civilizations have added to the diverseness in the workplace. They have adapted good to the planetary market place with operations in North America. Latin America. Europe/Middle East and Asia/Pacific” ( “Around the World. ” 2013 ) . Levis Strauss has employed a planetary labour force and has had to larn to accommodate to other state civilizations and legal patterns that differ immensely from the 1s here in America.

On their web site. I learned that “For more than 10 old ages [ Levi Strauss & A ; Co. has ] worked closely with the International Labor Organization’s Better Factories Cambodia program… to better the wellbeing of Kampuchean dress workers” the following slug on the list reads. “Levi Strauss & A ; Co. is …participating in – and funding – the Better Factories Cambodia one Change Campaign to turn to …workers conking in dress factories” ( West. 2014 ) . This multi-billion dollar company has been working for more than ten old ages with the ILO Better Factories Cambodia plan. and workers are still conking in their mills? These statements made me inquiry those great values of empathy. unity and bravery I’d antecedently read about. Is this the same company that’s aspiration statement says that it aspires to be “a company people can be proud of” ? Are their employees in Cambodia excessively hungry to work their displacement and fainting because of it? Again. what is ethical to some may non be to others. and this is a ground that I would non purchase portions of stock in this company.

In Case Exhibit 2. 1 we are shown that one of the standards that are considered when measuring public presentation in their societal audit: the “wage and salary degrees and just distribution” ( Jackson. Schuler. & A ; Werner. 2012. p. [ Page 70 ] ) . However. the non-profit organisation “Labor Behind the Label” who “works to better conditions and empower workers in the planetary garment industry” stated that Levi Strauss & A ; Co. is among the companies that declined to react to their study. This study asked companies to “provide really practical. concrete information about their work in a figure of countries. from preparations to purchasing inducements. and pay benchmarks to transparency issues” ( McMullen. 2014 ) . “Minimum rewards. normally defined by authoritiess. are set in the context of fierce competition and accordingly frequently fall good below these governments’ own poorness thresholds. Furthermore. a minimal pay is frequently good below what is required for a life pay. and research indicates that many providers do non even pay this legal minimum” ( “The Right to a Living. ” 2014 ) .

Levi Strauss declined to react to this study which makes me inquiry one time more what they believe to be ethical. For me. it’s non ethical to put in a company cognizing that they are using people in Cambodia and paying them less than 65 US dollars per month. yet province in their public presentation appraisal standards that they review rewards. salary and just distribution. Levis Strauss isn’t coming near to the cost of populating index in Cambodia. To acquire a pay you can populate from is a basic human right. Does Levi Strauss uphold high ethical criterions? It may look like it on the surface. Something that the directors at Levi Strauss are overlooking is that there are members of society that would see their organisational civilization as immoral and/or unethical. Levi Strauss was one of the innovators to offer insurance benefits to employees’ single domestic spouses. Potential employees and clients may non keep the same positions and happen them non to be an ethically sound company.

Additionally. Levi Strauss’ broad employment schemes and disobedience to appraise about rewards may do some people non to seek employment with their company or buy their merchandises. As we learned from the text. another of import portion of the HR function is to help the company in gaining and prolonging a competitory advantage. With all the competition in the market. clients that portion similar conservative positions may take to purchase their denims from other companies. Additionally. consumers may take to speak about these issues on societal media which could potentially make an unwanted image in the eyes of stakeholders. Last. there are more than a few viing companies out at that place. I would urge that Levi Strauss become more crystalline about take parting in the following study that Labor Behind the Label invites them to take part in. Rather than congregating with the ILO for another ten old ages. possibly they can make something to better the state of affairs in their Kampuchean mills like addition the $ 5/month cost of populating addition to $ 20/month or something that is more realistic. Management demands to be continually witting of the external environment in order to stay competitory.

Most investors would be smart to put in this company if they went public because of their great public image. their topographic point in the market. the length of service of the company and the fact that they look great on paper. Equally far as Human Resources Management goes. it appears that the HR Triad at Levi Strauss & A ; Co. has a good apprehension of the altering external and internal environments and have developed their human resources theoretical account with these environments in head. Would I purchase portions of this company? Not at all. Not merely do they non adhere to what I see as ethical behaviour. they are doing a ton of money off the dorsums of hapless people in other states and runing under the pretense of being a socially responsible company.

Plants Cited
Around the World. ( 2013 ) . Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //global. Matthew. com/
Bergh. C. ( 2014 ) . Who We Are. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. levistrauss. com/who-we-are/ # message-from-the-ceo/ Jackson. S. E. . Schuler. R. S. . & A ; Werner. S. ( 2012 ) . Chapter 2 [ Case Study ] . In Pull offing human resources ( 11th erectile dysfunction. . p. 69. 70 ) . Mason. Ohio: South Western/ Cengage Learning.

McMullen. A. ( 2014 ) . Tailored Wages UK – Report. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from Www. LabourBehindTheLabel. org web site:
hypertext transfer protocol: //www. labourbehindthelabel. org/campaigns/itemlist/category/294-report The study profiles 40 companies on the extent to which their actions are holding a positive existent consequence on workers’ rewards in garment mills. The Right to a Living Wage. ( 2014 ) . Retrieved September 11. 2014. from Www. LabourBehindTheLabel. org web site: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. labourbehindthelabel. org/ issues/item/736-wages

West. A. ( 2014. July 25 ) . Agents of Sustainable Change. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. levistrauss. com/unzipped-blog/2012/10/ one-link-our-supply-chain-Cambodia/