The Magazine of Corporate Responsibility

Tag Archive for ‘Massey Energy’

Culture Kills: The Legacy of Massey Energy

In April 2010, 29 miners died in Massey’s Upper Big Branch (UBB), the worst mining disaster in 40 years. On December 6, 2011, the U.S. Department of Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) issued a 1,000 page report of its investigation into the UBB tragedy. Alpha Natural Resources, which bought Massey earlier this year, agreed to pay $209 million in penalties (civil, criminal and restitution) for Massey Energy’s role in the explosion.

Proxy Voting for Sustainability

A sustainability advocate argues that it is illogical – and quite myopic – that many large institutional investors refer to shareholder resolutions on climate change and other material issues as “special interest,” “non-routine” or involving “special circumstances.” The opposite is true, she says: if companies aren’t addressing sustainability they won’t be producing long-term value for their shareholders.

Banks Funding Destructive Mountaintop Removal Mining

Many major banks invest in companies that engage in the environmentally destructive practice of mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining, whereby the tops of mountains are removed by explosives to expose thin seams of recoverable coal. Despite some banks’ stated intent to limit such financing, a Sierra Club/Rainforest Action Network “report card” indicates that few are yet walking the talk.

Political Contributions by Target and Best Buy Stir Criticism

Retailers Target and Best Buy find themselves the focus of unwanted attention following their contributions to an organization that backs a Minnesota gubernatorial candidate who opposes gay marriage. The case is one of the first major controversies since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that corporations and unions could spend freely on political campaigns.

Activist Investors Claim Record Results on Climate Change

Investors filed a record 101 climate and energy-related resolutions with 88 U.S. and Canadian companies in 2010, a 50% increase from the year-earlier, according to activist shareholder organizations. A record 51 resolutions were withdrawn after the companies agreed to climate change and energy-related commitments.

Conscious Capitalism: New Models for 21st Century Business

Columnist Gael O’Brien takes a look at a new organization and a group of business leaders who believe that a company can be profitable while also safeguarding trust, reputation, and credibility with stakeholders. One CEO poses the question: “Is it possible to create an enterprise where everybody wins?”