Abstract
This case is about Walmart’s launch of Love, Earth—a one billion dollar line of sustainable jewellery—told from the perspective of an NGO activist. Perhaps uniquely among sustainability cases to date, it offers the opportunity to explore strategic CSR and sustainability by a large MNC from the perspective of the firm and the NGO activists.
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Notes
- 1.
See Robert Slater, The Walmart Triumph: Inside the World’s #1 Company, Portfolio, 2003, p. 30–34.
- 2.
See James Hoopes, “Growth Through Knowledge” in Lichtenstein, op. cit., p. 91, and Misha Petrovic and Gary G. Hamilton, “Making Global Markets,” in Lichtenstein, ibid., p. 133.
- 3.
Walmart Annual Report 2010, http://walmartstores.com/sites/annualreport/2010/financial_highlights.aspx.
- 4.
Charles Fishman, The Walmart Effect: How the World’s Most Powerful Company Really Works – and How It’s Transforming the American Economy, Penguin Press, 2006, p. 103.
- 5.
See Nelson Lichtenstein, Walmart: The Face of Twentieth Century Capitalism, Nelson Lichtenstein (ed.), p. 11.
- 6.
Petrovic and Hamilton, op. cit., p. 130.
- 7.
See Maria Halkias, “Walmart’s Urban Push,” The Dallas Morning News, 1 November, 2005.
- 8.
See Bill Quinn, How Walmart is Destroying America (and the World) and What You Can Do About It, Ten Speed Press, 2005, pp. 1–26.
- 9.
According to Fishman, op. cit., pp. 240–1, in Tennessee 10,261 children of Walmart employees were enrolled in state health care for the poor; in Georgia, 9,617 Walmart associates were provided healthcare by state-aided programmes for the poor. Wake-Up Walmart claimed that one in seven U.S. Walmart employees had no healthcare coverage and that a substantial number earned below the poverty line. See: http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/facts/#healthcare
- 10.
Ellen Israel Rosen, “How to Squeeze More Out of a Penny,” in Lichtenstein, op. cit., pp. 245–246.
- 11.
See Liza Featherstone, “Walmart’s P.R. War,” Salon.com, 2 August 2005.
- 12.
Bethany Moreton, To Serve God and Walmart: The Making of Christian Free Enterprize, Harvard University Press, 2009, pp. 1–5.
- 13.
Michael Barbaro, “A New Weapon for Walmart: A War Room,” The New York Times, 1 November, 2005. From 2000 to 2005, Walmart’s share price dropped approximately 20 %; at that time, Walmart appeared to have reached the saturation point of its rural expansion strategy, necessitating a move into urban markets, where it faced a more effective political opposition.
- 14.
See Robert Berner, “Can Walmart Wear a White Hat?” BusinessWeek, 3 October, 2005.
- 15.
As cited in Pia Sarkar, “Walmart’s World View: Giant Retailer Says It’s Ready to Tackle Hot-Button Issues,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 October, 2005.
- 16.
Adam Werback, Strategy for Sustainability: A Business Manifesto, Harvard Business Press, 2009, pp. 35–36; 92–118; 132–135; 157–158.
- 17.
See Erica L. Plambeck, “The Greening of Walmart’s Supply Chain”, Supply Chain Management Review, 1 July, 2007.
- 18.
Ylan Q. Mui, “At Walmart, ‘Green’ Has Various Shades”, Washington Post, November 16, 2007.
- 19.
See Earthworks, “Tarnished Gold? Assessing the jewelry industry’s progress on ethical sourcing of metals,” March 2010.
- 20.
See UNEP/OCHA Report on the Cyanide Spill at Baia Mare, Romania.
- 21.
- 22.
See John Tepper Marlin, “The ‘No Dirty Gold’ campaign: what economists can learn from and contribute to corporate campaigns,” The Economics of Peace and Security Journal, Vol. 1, No. 2 (2006), pp. 57–60.
- 23.
- 24.
Marc Gunther, “The Green Machine,” Fortune, July 31, 2006.
- 25.
Criteria 8 and 9 have been in part guided by Walmart’s Stores Inc., Standards for Suppliers, The International Finance Corporation (IFC), Performance Standard 2: Labor and Working Conditions; the International Council of Mining and Metals, Sustainable Development Principle 3; the UN Global Compact; and, a number of international conventions negotiated through the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations (UN) including:
ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize
ILO Convention 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining
ILO Convention 29 on Forced Labor
ILO Convention 105 on the Abolition of Forced Labor
ILO Convention 138 on Minimum Age (of Employment)
ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor
ILO Convention 100 on Equal Remuneration
ILO Convention 111 on Discrimination (Employment and Occupation)
- 26.
Sites with habitat required for the survival of critically endangered or endangered species; four areas having special significance for endemic or restricted-range species; sites that are critical for the survival of migratory species; areas supporting globally significant concentrations or numbers of individuals of congregatory species; areas with unique assemblages of species or which are associated with key evolutionary processes or provide key ecosystem services; and areas having biodiversity of significant social, economic or cultural importance to local communities.
- 27.
There may be unique situations where the development of a mine can benefit or enhance the conservation and protection of valuable ecosystems. If it can be demonstrated that material benefit from mining will occur – a ‘net-positive’ outcome – development in these areas may be considered.
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Smith, N.C., Crawford, R.J. (2019). Walmart: Love, Earth (A). In: Lenssen, G.G., Smith, N.C. (eds) Managing Sustainable Business. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1144-7_13
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