Social Corporate Responsibility In Brazil: Making A Difference

In line with a worldwide trend, the corporate social responsibility has been a growing concern for Brazilian companies not only to improve their public image, but also, and especially, as a tool for social integration and community development.

If, during most of the 20th century, companies' concerns were essentially directed towards production efficiency and the pursuit of larger consumer markets and profits, with little regard for issues such as quality control, consumer rights, social and environmental management, today this conduct has become unthinkable.

Undoubtedly, the evolution of the Brazilian civil, labor, social security and environmental laws contributed to the inclusion of social and community issues in the Brazilian companies' concerns. Nonetheless, the growing influence of the public opinion and the undeniable strengthening of the bargaining power of clients/ consumers vis-à-vis a scenario of sharp business competition were and are still decisive factors for the higher social awareness of corporations.

In fact, for a certain time now, Brazilian companies have had their social obligations established by law - hence mandatory - intended to mitigate the social and economic problems afflicting the Brazilian population, such as: (i) contribution to the Social Security; (ii) payment of the Unemployment Savings Fund (FGTS); (iii) financing of the Occupational Accident Insurance; (iv) job quotas for the disabled, among others.

However, social actions required by law are almost fully restricted to the group of individuals regularly employed, yielding insufficient effects on the progress of the local community, in particular if we take into consideration the mass of Brazilian workers performing "informal" activities (those not registered with the Labor Ministry and the Social Security Ministry). Moreover, the mere compliance by a company with legal requirements is no longer a quality or differential that might be considered by the demanding consumer who now very much keeps a watchful eye on the companies' ethical and moral procedures.

Within this context, the social corporate responsibility has been reinforced by initiatives not linked to legal impositions, which, it should be emphasized, have been achieving good results and greater efficiency in reducing the Brazilian social and economic differences.

It is also important to note that, by and large, the Brazilian society has been realizing that the State is not able to meet the basic...