Nestle's sale of infant formula in the Third World set off highly publicized international boycotts. Although businesses usually line up against government proposals to impose a human-rights test in foreign trade policy, sensitivity to the issue is evident in corporate decisions. Levi Strauss elected not to buy jeans from China because of that country's disregard for human rights. Home Depot cut off suppliers indulging in exploitative labor practices, and Procter and Gamble discontinued a line of fruit juice concentrate shortly after the media exposed cases of worker exploitation by sub-contractors. In a related vein, Medtronic fired an international manager for making improper payments.
Issues are ever-present.
Certainly the changes outlined above are complex, and their long-term, cumulative impact is difficult to predict. However, three themes are clearly discernible. First is the pervasive demand that directors do more to ensure that profits and shareholder values rise in keeping with market expectations. Second is the continuing expansion of the role of government in setting standards and demanding compliance from business. Third is the increasing acceptance of the idea that business should respond to multiple stakeholders, not only investors, and in so doing tackle serious ethical, social, environmental, economic and even political issues.