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Board-level codetermination: A driving force for corporate social responsibility in German companies?

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  • Scholz, Robert
  • Vitols, Sigurt

Abstract

We examine the relationship between board-level codetermination and corporate social responsibility in German companies, engaging with two distinct literatures. Most quantitative studies of codetermination focus on its economic impact, with little attention to other outcomes. Studies of corporate social responsibility rarely consider the role of worker representatives. Our new measure of the strength of codetermination, the Mitbestimmungsindex (MB-ix), shows a positive relationship with ‘substantive’ policies such as the adoption of targets for reducing pollution, but not with ‘symbolic’ policies, such as membership of the UN Global Compact. We therefore shed new light on the role of codetermination and provide a more differentiated view of the spread of what has been termed ‘explicit’ corporate social responsibility in Germany.

Suggested Citation

  • Scholz, Robert & Vitols, Sigurt, 2019. "Board-level codetermination: A driving force for corporate social responsibility in German companies?," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 25(3), pages 233-246.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:214273
    DOI: 10.1177/0959680119830566
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. Kinderman, Daniel & Lutter, Mark, 2018. "Explaining the growth of CSR within OECD countries: The role of institutional legitimacy in resolving the institutional mirror vs. substitute debate," MPIfG Discussion Paper 18/2, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.
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    Cited by:

    1. Andrea Bernardi, 2019. "Using the capability approach and organizational climate to study occupational health and safety," Post-Print hal-02163019, HAL.
    2. Simon Jäger & Benjamin Schoefer & Jörg Heining, 2021. "Labor in the Boardroom," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 136(2), pages 669-725.
    3. Laszlo Goerke, 2022. "Trade unions and corporate social responsibility," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 93(1), pages 177-203, March.
    4. Anna Shevyakova & Eleonorа Munsh & Malika Arystan, 2019. "Towards diversification of the economy of Kazakhstan via information support for the tourism industry," Insights into Regional Development, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 1(2), pages 138-154, June.
    5. Vitols Sigurt, 2023. "Board Level Employee Representation and Tax Avoidance in Europe," Accounting, Economics, and Law: A Convivium, De Gruyter, vol. 13(4), pages 457-478, November.
    6. Chyz, James A. & Eulerich, Marc & Fligge, Benjamin & Romney, Miles A., 2023. "Codetermination and aggressive reporting: Audit committee employee representation, tax aggressiveness, and earnings management," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    7. Scholz, Robert, 2021. "Labour in the Board and Good Work: How to Measure and Evidence From Germany," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 32(3), pages 219-243.
    8. Andrea Bernardi, 2019. "Using the capability approach and organizational climate to study occupational health and safety," Insights into Regional Development, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 1(2), pages 155-170, June.
    9. Gregorič, Aleksandra, 2022. "Board-level worker representation," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1136, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    10. Hugo Gaillard & Dhikra Chebbi Nekhili & Mehdi Nekhili, 2024. "Employee Board Compensation Committee Membership: a contrasting appropriation by SBF120 firms? [La participation des représentants salariés au comité de rémunération : une appropriation contrastée ," Post-Print hal-04713094, HAL.
    11. Vitols, Sigurt, 2021. "Board Level Employee Representation and Tax Avoidance in Europe," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, issue Ahead-of-, pages 1-1.
    12. Laszlo Goerke & Nora Paulus, 2024. "Collective Bargaining about Corporate Social Responsibility," IAAEU Discussion Papers 202401, Institute of Labour Law and Industrial Relations in the European Union (IAAEU).

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