How can stakeholders promote environmental and social responsibility in the shipping industry?

Abstract

The highly globalized and competitive nature of the shipping industry poses serious governance challenges. Recently, the use of voluntary measures, such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, has been explored in terms of moving towards environmentally and socially responsible as well as safe shipping industry practices. Limited attention has been paid on the role of stakeholders such as consumers, employees, NGOs, and academia in pressuring the shipping industry towards greater environmental and social responsibility. Here, by applying stakeholder theory and drawing on examples of already materialized stakeholder actions and multistakeholder initiatives, we study the potential ways that stakeholders can promote CSR in the shipping industry: we explore the resource dependencies between stakeholders, the stakeholder influence strategies, and the importance of multi-stakeholder pressure. We show that stakeholders can gain more power by using indirect strategies such as working via and/or in alliances with NGOs, trade unions, banks and financers, and/or different national or international regulatory bodies, as well as with the industry itself. Our results reveal the potential of multi-stakeholder pressure and action to promote the adoption of CSR activities, support the transparency, legitimacy, and enforcement of the practices, as well as widen the scope and focus of CSR initiatives and practices by focusing on a broad range of social and environmental issues. Finally, stakeholder pressure can push towards improved regulations. The study suggests that increased attention needs to be paid on the multi-stakeholder demands, especially considering the accentuated importance of effective maritime governance in the future.

Value Creation through Corporate Sustainability in the Port Sector: A Structured Literature Analysis

“…Environmental impacts of the shipping industry are perceived as more and more severe, including air pollutant emissions, oil and chemical water pollution, litter, sewage, and invasive species in ballast water [20]. Furthermore, the abuse of maritime policies with the use of flags of convenience to avoid national or regional regulation and tax evasion is characteristic for this industry [8]. Yliskylä-Peuralahti et al [21] characterize two types of companies competing with each other in the shipping market: "Those companies that are responsible and focus on high-quality shipping and those that focus on providing low-cost services at the expense of safety and the environment".…”

“…Port managing corporations have been forced to start shifting their main objectives beyond profit maximization to include sustainable performance [6]. It is regarded as necessary to extend stakeholder involvement in maritime governance and to embrace a larger sustainable co-operation between stakeholders in the shipping industry [7,8]. In addition, buyer-driven environmental upgrading is being increasingly recognized as important, although it is not likely to result in change in management practices and operation unless it is supported by clear, predictable, and enforceable global regulations [9].…”

What explains SECA compliance: rational calculation or moral judgment?

“…This will facilitate the successful enforcement of the global rules (Trident Alliance). Parviainen et al (2018) believe that through multi-stakeholder alliances, it is possible Media discourse is a part of building the compliance culture: regulators and other stakeholders express their opinions and state their values in the media. Through their statements, companies impact each other's compliance motivations.…”

Global strategy gone astray: Maersk's big box boats and the world shipping industry

“…Operational disruptions and labor unions can equally impact the shipping industry and its billions of dollars of operations (Chen et al, ; Corbett & Winebrake, ; Fenton, ; Horvath et al, ; Kopela, ; Milne, , ; Parviainen, Lehikoinen, Kuikka, & Haapasaari, ; Pettit, Wells, Haider, & Abouarghoub, ; The Economist, ; Traut et al, ; Wan et al, ). Networks and sourcing remain critical to the global shipping and container industry because of corporate efficiencies and timely operations (Li, Xu, & Shi, ; Lorange & Fjeldstad, ; Puranam, Gulati, & Bhattacharya, ).…”