Basic HTML Version
Employees’ strong support
and the reality of life for much of the country’s poor population
can be palpable. For employees, seeing their companies ‘giving
back’ and playing a positive role in poor communities is more
important than employers might think“, says Ant Clark,
WA Donor Relations Manager for Opportunity International
Australia (Opportunity).
A study by Cavill & Co found that 60% of employees would
like their company to do
more
to support a cause, with 87%
saying they would feel proud to work for a company that
offers significant (not token) support to causes or charities.
Interestingly, 41% even said they would be willing to take a job
that was paid less if it provided a chance to make a difference
in a community.
Where mining companies are required in their licensing
agreements to get involved in local community initiatives,
development organisations such as Opportunity can add
value by running and monitoring their
corporate social responsibility (CSR)
activities and opening up a network
of partners – local organisations with
the knowledge, skills and experience
to know what a community needs and
how to provide it. The funds invested
can come out of a company’s operating
budget, and by working through
organisations like Opportunity, there
is no need for a company to invest time
and money in development creating
new community projects – Opportunity
and other non-profits like it already
have programs awaiting funding.
Opportunity has been working with
the poor in developing countries for
more than 40 years. Like many mining
companies, Opportunity works in
remote areas of countries such as India,
Indonesia and the Philippines; using
microfinance – a business approach
to solve the problem of poverty. Often described as giving
people a hand-up not a hand-out, microfinance (the provision
of small loans) enables people living in poverty to start a small
business and earn a regular income. Each business can feed,
home and educate a family; while some even go on to employ
others, eventually empowering a whole community. Since 97%
of loans are repaid, microfinance is considered one of the most
sustainable development tools around.
By supporting programs like microfinance, mining
companies not only build their reputation externally (on both
a local and global scale), but also internally. “Employees want
to see the communities in which their company’s operate
thrive and grow,” says Mr Clark. As employees see the impact
of community grants made by their employer, have their
donation matched through a workplace giving program and are
invited to fundraise and raise awareness of the cause through
t is great for PR, required by company licensing
agreements and invaluable to the communities
involved, but there is another benefit of mining
companies participating in local community
development programs – communicating to
employees that their company is part of something bigger.
Studies show that allowing employees to get involved
in social causes positively impacts their sense of pride and
motivation in their workplace, and, for companies spending
significant funds on recruitment and training, it also positively
impacts employer choice and retention. The key is employee
engagement – communicating to and involving staff in
the support of the cause itself – whether through regular
fundraising activities, a workplace giving program that involves
company dollar matching, by offering a volunteer program and
by celebrating company grants to charitable causes.
Increasingly, Australian mining companies are embracing
their unique positions within the regions where they operate.
“For companies working in developing countries rich in natural
resources, the juxtaposition between the benefits of industry
ANT CLARK
DONOR RELATIONS MANAGER, WA
OPPORTUNITY INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA
BIGGER VISIONS
I
for corporate social responsibility
MICROFINANCE IS A SUSTAINABLE INITIATIVE THAT MINING
COMPANIES CAN SUPPORT IN THE POOR COMMUNITIES THEY WORK IN.
AGUSTINUS IN INDONESIA WAS GIVEN A SMALL LOAN TO GROW A SMALL FARM
MINESITE 2011
•
120