The Magazine of Corporate Responsibility

Tag Archive for ‘Apple’

Proxy Season 2011: Progress or Procrastination?

Reporter James Hyatt says that depending on whom you ask, when it comes to shareholder activism and corporate governance issues this year’s proxy season is a glass half full, a glass half empty, or a glass completely shattered.

Apple Opposes Shareholder Successorship Proposal

The Central Laborers’ Pension Fund has proposed that the company “adopt and disclose a written and detailed succession planning policy.” Apple’s successorship plans are particularly sensitive because Apple CEO Steve Jobs underwent a liver transplant operation in 2009.

Is There a Culture of Secrecy Behind Corporate Responsibility?

Does a commitment to corporate responsibility provide cover for bad corporate behavior? Stories about companies behaving badly make commitments to CR look hollow at best. Neil Smith argues it is not just commitments that matter, but the corporate culture set by the person at the top of the organization and internal subcultures determined by the employees and managers which are important.

How to Find Information on Green Electronics

Now that many consumers are beginning to care about their own environmental footprints, manufacturers of electronic equipment are responding with loads of greener offerings.

Johnson & Johnson, Under Investigation, Tops CSR Index

Johnson & Johnson topped a list of companies perceived by American consumers as having the best reputations for corporate social responsibility practices. Months after research for the Index was conducted, the company admitted that it misled regulators and consumers by using contractors to buy defective Motrin painkiller products from store shelves rather than announce a recall.

Influential Voices in U.S. Board Rooms

Regulators and rulemakers led the list of 100 most influential people affecting corporate governance in America’s board rooms in 2010, according to the National Association of Corporate Directors. Sen. Christopher Dodd and Rep. Barney Frank, authors of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Law, were re-elected to the list as was Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary L. Schapiro.

Debate on Cell Phone Radiation Continues

Some recent studies have found higher risks for brain and salivary gland tumors among people using cell phones for 10 years or longer, while other research has found little if any risk. Other research has looked at the reproductive, cognitive and sleep effects of RF energy at levels similar to what cell/smart phones emit. Results have been mixed.

Google Halts Censorship on Chinese Search

Google announces a “new approach to China,” indicating that China’s behavior toward human rights activists and other efforts “to further limit free speech on the web in China” had led Google to stop censoring its search services on the Google.cn site and instead redirect traffic to its Hong Kong-based servers.

Say-on-Pay Shareholder Votes Gain Momentum

The number of so-called “say-on-pay” votes has increased from only 6 in 2008, when Aflac Inc. became the first to adopt the practice, and 19 in 2009.

Apple Increases Its Monitoring of Suppliers

The company says it conducted on-site audits at 102 facilities in 2009, up from 83 in 2008, and trained 133,000 workers, supervisors and managers, a sharp increase from 27,000 a year earlier.