好时童工问题折射商界社会责任感缺失

    上个月，万圣节上“洗劫”邻居的孩子们收获了成堆的糖果，这些战利品很可能来自同一家公司。好时公司（Hershey）自称是北美地区最大的巧克力生产商，全年总收入超过60亿美元，旗下包括瑞斯（Reese's）、奇巧（Kit Kat）、多滋乐（Twizzlers）、乔利兰奇（Jolly Rancher）和酷力冰（Ice Breakers）等80多个糖果品牌。而向孩子们分发糖果的家长们并不知道，好时同时正陷入一场涉及使用童工的诉讼争议中。

    万圣节当天，格兰特和艾森霍夫律师事务所（Grant and Eisenhofer）提起诉讼，指控好时公司的供应商使用童工。这起诉讼的委托人是好时公司最大的股东之一，也就是路易斯安那市警署雇员退休基金（Louisiana Municipal Police Employees' Retirement System）。起诉书称：“有充分的事实证据显示，好时公司董事会指使或批准公司支持使用非法童工，从而事实上将非法使用童工的行为纳入了公司的商业模式。”在这份起诉书中，退休基金方面还要求查阅好时公司的内部档案，以便核实公司是否与那些已知存在非法童工和强迫劳动行径的供应商合作。

    《财富》网站（Fortune.com）今年2月的一篇新闻中，好时公司“宣布计划在2017年之前，向西非的可可农场投入1,000万美元，以解决那里的童工问题。”这也是好时公司在1月发布的一份媒体新闻稿的主要内容。公司的一位发言人口头对我说，他们“对正在进行的诉讼不做评论。”不过同时他在电子邮件中对我写道：“好时公司非常严肃地看待自己的采购责任承诺。”他还在邮件中提到：“上个月我们公布了承诺，将在2020年以前做到百分百向通过第三方认证的可可农场采购原料。”

    普拉西斯共同基金（Praxis Mutual funds）的投资管理专家克里斯•梅尔说，他从2009年开始就开始与好时公司协商相关问题。他告诉我，到今年年底前，雨林联盟（Rainforest Alliance）将完成好时公司贝里斯（Bliss）巧克力生产线的人权和环境保护标准认证。

    不过，好时的用工问题不仅限于西非的可可农场。《纽约时报》（the New York Times）报道称，今年早些时候，美国劳工部（Labor Department）“因为宾夕法尼亚州一家包装好时巧克力的工厂隐瞒严重的工伤事件，对其开具了28.3万美元的劳工健康和安全违规罚单”。去年，由几百名在该工厂打工的外国学生发起的抗议行动，引来了《纽约时报》的调查。

    很多公司的董事会成员在遇到劳工问题时，往往会联想起一些著名的、引起大量公众注意的劳工纠纷案例，例如耐克公司（Nike）的“血汗工厂”事件。有些则会进而考虑到这对公司用工伦理和声誉的影响。

    然而，各家公司的董事会对劳工问题的反应参差不齐。苹果公司（Apple）今年进一步加强了对供应商的约束，它在中国的供应商富士康（Foxconn）此前因为被美国公平劳动协会（Fair Labor Association）指出存在用工问题，遭到《纽约时报》的连续报道揭露。尽管富士康已经改进了一些问题，但今年九月《纽约时报》的新文章还是指出它的一些厂区有强迫劳动的现象。

    Children who amassed stockpiles of Halloween candy last month most likely netted impressive loot from just one company. Hershey claims that it's the largest chocolatier in North America, with over $6 billion in annual revenues and over 80 brands including Reese's, Kit Kat, Twizzlers, Jolly Rancher, and Ice Breakers. Unbeknownst to some parents handing out these treats, Hershey also happens to be embroiled in a child labor controversy.

    A lawsuit filed by law firm Grant and Eisenhofer on All Saints Day alleges that Hershey's suppliers use child labor. Grant and Eisenhofer sued on behalf of one of the chocolate maker's largest shareholders, the Louisiana Municipal Police Employees' Retirement System. "There are substantial grounds to believe that the Company's Board of Directors (the"Board") has caused or permitted the Company to support the use of unlawful child labor, in fact integrating this illegal conduct into its business model," the complaint states.

    In the complaint against Hershey (HSY), the pension fund asks to see corporate records to determine whether the company has been using suppliers known for illegal child and forced labor practices.

    Hershey had "announced plans to put $10 million towards solving child labor problems on West African cocoa farms by 2017," according to a February article from Fortune.com, based on a January press release from the company. A company spokesperson told me they "don't comment on pending litigation," but wrote by email that "The Hershey Company takes its commitment to responsible sourcing very seriously," noting that, "last month we announced our commitment to source 100 percent third-party certified cocoa by 2020."

    Chris Meyer, a stewardship investing specialist with Praxis Mutual funds, says he has been speaking with Hershey on these issues since 2009. By the end of this year, the Rainforest Alliance will have certified Hershey's Bliss chocolate line for human rights and environmental standards, he told me.

    But Hershey's labor issues haven't been confined to cocoa farms. Earlier this year, the Labor Department "issued fines of $283,000 for health and safety violations against a company that operates a plant in Pennsylvania packing Hershey's chocolates, saying it had covered up serious injuries to workers," the New York Times reported. Protests last year by hundreds of the plant's foreign student workers prompted the investigation, according to the Times.

    When many board members consider labor issues, they often think about sweatshops and famous cases like Nike that have received a lot of attention. Some recognize both the ethical and reputational concerns.

    But board members' reactions are a mixed bag. Apple stepped up its efforts this year to police suppliers after a series of New York Times articles on Foxconn, a Chinese plant with questionable labor practices, according to the Fair Labor Association. Although Foxconn improved some of its practices, in September the Times reported new allegations of forced labor at the company's facilities.