csr framework_albania_final

CSR Action Plan CSR Framework for SMEs in Albania

Developed by Arindam Basu

(www.g-h.dk)

Summary: Customers increasingly want to deal with socially and environmentally

conscious businesses. This presents opportunities for small and medium sized enterprise

(SME) owners to develop new areas of competitive advantage. Capitalizing on CSR

opportunities can lead to long term business value, but requires managers to integrate

a CSR Strategy with the business strategy.

http://www.g-h.dk/

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CSR Action Plan CSR Framework for SMEs in Albania

1. What is CSR?

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) means that companies integrate social and

environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with business

relevant groups on a voluntary basis. In Europe a variety of other related terms (e.g.

Corporate Responsibility, Corporate Sustainability, Corporate Governance, and Corporate

Citizenship) exist, and often they are equated to CSR.

In general, CSR is characterized by the following aspects:

• Responsible entrepreneurship

• Voluntary initiatives going beyond legislative requirements and contractual

obligations

• Activities to benefit the employees, business relevant groups (including the society

as such) or the environment

• With a positive contribution to the individual target group while minimizing

negative effects on other (incl. environment)

• Regular activities rather than one-time-events (i.e. related to business strategy vs.

ad hoc)

Although CSR is often discussed in the context of larger enterprises, it also is a strategic tool

to enhance the competitiveness of SMEs. While the positive effects of CSR can be difficult

to comprehend initially, with a simple system organizations can ‘Measure, Report and Verify’

the impact of CSR on its business.

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CSR in the Context of Albania:

CSR is an important tool for private sector to actively contribute to the sustainable

development, which is a long-term goal of EU. New EU Member States and candidate

countries face a challenge of integrating sustainability principles on a country and sectoral

level in order to reach coherence with old EU countries. The UNDP has been already

supporting projects with the aim to accelerate the implementation of CSR practices in the

new EU Member States and candidate countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania,

Macedonia, Poland, Slovak Republic and Turkey.

The European Parliament adopted the Directive 2013/34/EU in April 2014, and this requires

disclosure by companies and groups on “non-financial” (e.g. social, environmental impacts)

and diversity (e.g. women employees, marginalized groups etc.) related information. The EU

Directive takes on the ‘CSR Law’ that exists in Denmark since 2008, and has helped the

country gain significant expertise in helping companies integrate sustainability strategy into

business strategy.

To help companies in Albania prepare for the eventuality, the UNDP has appointed a

consortium led by Denmark based Grue + Hornstrup (G+H) and the local expertise of Delina

Fico and Mirela Arqimandriti to support interested companies take the initial steps in

implementing CSR within their organization and gaining a massive advantage.

Defining SME:

In many ways, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the original sustainable businesses.

Close links to customers, employees and suppliers, and the integration of business with family

life mean that SMEs are often better than large firms at understanding communities and the

natural environment. Sustainability and the legacy of the firm are a part of SMEs’ day-to-day

activities – even if they don’t call it CSR.

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Influencing SMEs' competitiveness through CSR

Saving Money: CSR involves reducing waste and unnecessary energy, fuel and other inputs.

All these actions can save companies money.

Managing Business Risks: CSR helps firms get ahead of supply chain pressure and ever-

stricter regulation. Firms adopting sustainable practices early avoid a costly rush to comply.

Maintaining Social Acceptance or “license to operate”: In order to do business, companies

need to be seen positively by its “stakeholders.”

CSR and Stakeholder Relationships:

• Employees: Treating employees well increases their job satisfaction and makes

them more likely to stay with the company. Other CSR initiatives can also increase

employee loyalty.

• Customers: Customers who know about a company’s CSR actions think better of

the company and are more likely to patronize it. Companies that have integrated

CSR into their business systems may also find new market opportunities.

• Community: Community connections can have multiple benefits. For example,

keeping neighbors informed about actions that might affect them, like a building

expansion, will make projects go more smoothly.

• Peers: Peer companies increasingly value sustainability in their partners. Other

companies can also provide CSR advice and collaborate on CSR initiatives.

• Regulators: CSR practices help companies meet legal requirements. As an added

benefit, companies in compliance get new permits more quickly.

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CSR and Triple Bottom Line

In a broad sense, CSR is the relationship between business and the society (including its

stakeholders) in which it operates. It looks beyond financial and regulatory commitments of

organizations and corporations (the ‘C’ of CSR) and drives towards a more inclusive social,

environmental and economic decisions (the expanded ‘S’ of CSR) with a focus on being

ethical, transparent and responsible in its decision making (the ‘R’ of CSR). In order to make

CSR accountable, the concept of Triple Bottom Line (TBL) sought to extend the traditional

business accounting practice of assessing, reporting and verifying the ‘bottom line’ (i.e.

Profits), to include the 3 pillars of TBL, namely ‘People’ ‘Planet and ‘Profit’.

Fig 1: TBL and the Circles of Sustainability

Social Sustainability

People

Economic Sustainability

Environmental Sustainability

PlanetProfit

The 3 pillars of TripleBottom Line pyramid

The 3 circles ofSustainability

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2. Developing a CSR Strategy – Quick Wins

SMEs can take simple, achievable steps to become more sustainable. Even a very small firm

can reinforce its position as a responsible member of the community without becoming a

‘CSR expert’. Actions can be “quick wins” or a comprehensive CSR Strategy.

• Quick wins are easy to accomplish and don’t require a lot of expertise or effort.

• A comprehensive CSR Strategy require that an organization takes stock of its

business and identify opportunities that are a good long-term fit. While more time

consuming, a comprehensive approach may have more significant payoffs and

result in enduring positive social, economic and environmental change.

Types of CSR Activities – Quick Wins

In completing the ‘CSR Self-Assessment Tool’ (See Annexure), SMEs will being to recognize

that their current set of socio-economic and environmental activities can be categorized

under one or more of the 4 categories below:

• Workforce-oriented CSR Activities

• Market-oriented CSR Activities

• Society-oriented CSR Activities

• Environment-oriented CSR Activities

Formalizing ‘Quick Win’ CSR Activities (Preparatory Phase):

The first step for a SME is to formally recognize existing activities as quick-win CSR activities.

Recognition will require documenting and communicating the on-going efforts to SME

stakeholders. While the initial focus can be on educating internal stakeholders (e.g. workers,

managers, owners), it is equally important to raise awareness with external stakeholders

(suppliers, consumers, local community, financers, government) and be recognized.

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In the following sections, the action plan discusses what constitutes different CSR Activities

and few examples of CSR activities undertaken by SMEs in Europe.

Workforce-oriented CSR Activities

A focus on work force / employees includes, for example:

• Improvement of working conditions (e.g. health and safety of work place along

with appropriate training)

• Work/life balance (e.g. fair distribution of working hours/week)

• Equal opportunities and diversity

• Training and staff development (incl. Career planning)

• Better communication with employees and participation in company decisions

• Responsible and fair remuneration or financial support of employees (e.g. Pension

systems, interest-free loans etc.)

Examples:

The medium-sized Polish construction company "MELBUD Sp. Z.o.o." has an internal social

fund to finance cultural, educational or sport activities for employees or Christmas vouchers.

Out-standing members of the staff can also expect to get loans that do not have to be fully

re-paid. The employees have a feeling of professional stability and identify themselves with

the company. This results in a better atmosphere, a higher commitment and engagement.

The Romanian research company "SC Icemenerg SA" assigns 5 % of its turnover to measures

targeting at improving the employees' working conditions, e.g. by investing into

occupational health, training, social events (such as the provision of a recreation center or

a gym hall).

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Market-oriented CSR Activities

Market-oriented CSR activities target, on the one hand, at the customers and, on the other

hand, at business partners and/or suppliers. Respective initiatives include

• Activities to improve the quality or safety of products

• Provision of voluntary services to the clients

• Fair pricing

• Ethical advertising

• Paying suppliers or business partners without delay

• Contracting local partners

• Driving standards through the supply chain

• Supporting the establishment of local/regional business alliances

Examples:

As part of its management policy, the Spanish medium-sized manufacturing company

"Ascensores Jordá" follows an active subcontracting policy with its suppliers, establishing

long-term relations with them and developing a number of collaborating activities in several

fields such as quality control, risk prevention etc. In fact, the enterprise continues maintaining

business relationships with their initial suppliers (since 1953).

The German small kitchen producer "Die Möbelmacher GmbH" arranges cost free cookery

courses for the customers to familiarize them with both, the firms' kitchens and health-

conscious diets. The enterprise initiated and participates in various co-operations. Once a

year, regional producers come together for a "Day of the Region" to exchange experiences

and inform others about their own sustainable business approach. As a result of these

activities, Die Möbelmacher achieved significant increases in turnover during the past years.

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Society-oriented CSR Activities

CSR activities targeted at the society/community may refer to

• Labour market integration at community level (e.g. youth training program)

• Improvement of the local infrastructure (e.g. financing and/or supporting the

construction of a community center)

• Cash or in-kind donations to local community institutions (e.g. Schools, hospitals,

environmental groups, cultural organizations, leisure and sports clubs etc.)

• Support of the society in a wider sense (e.g. working with the local municipality to

set up a waste management or recycling facility)

Examples:

"Stormberg AS", a small Norwegian wholesaler recruits at least 25 % of their employees from

persons who are disadvantaged at the labour market. Presently, almost 30 % of the

employees are former prisoners, school drop outs and people with a drug abuse problem.

The company benefits from very loyal employees, low personnel fluctuation and

absenteeism. Only four people have left the company since it was established in 1998.

Kamza Development - Garden City in Tirana

“Constructing with quality and with a modern road infrastructure, creating spaces of green

area, playgrounds parks for children, facilities for young and elderly people makes our

residential complex "Garden City" unique in its kind in Tirana city. Duties and our responsibility

for our customer do not end with the sale but continues throughout time by creating

facilities and green areas, common area maintenance and keeping clean our living places

to make it more comfortable as possible in order to increase the quality of life for residents

in our complex.”

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Environment-oriented CSR Activities

CSR activities in the field of the protection of the environment focus on

• Designing environmentally friendly products or production processes

• An efficient use of resources

• The reduction of waste and pollution

• Applying an ecologic assessment on the suppliers concerning their environmental

standards

• Informing business partners, customers or the society on environmental issues

Examples:

Denmark based engineering consultancy “Grue+Hornstrup” follows a CSR approach in the

fields of waste management, sorting and recycling, energy-saving by turning down lights at

night as well as using devices to maximize the use of natural light during working hours.

Furthermore, the company is actively engaged in the implementation of the UN Global

Compact (a global CSR eco-label) in the organization which helps improve its brand image.

These activities are not only ecologically valuable, save money by reducing costs but also

generate new business partnerships and opportunities.

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3. Comprehensive CSR Strategy

The comprehensive approach will allow SMEs interested in not pursuing a singular approach

but combine two or more of the above areas. More importantly it deals with finding a

synergy between a company’s “CSR Strategy” and its “Business Strategy”

Fig 2: Comprehensive Approach: Synergy between CSR and Business Strategy

CSR Strategy

The value of looking at CSR as an issue that is strategic, rather than one that is merely

philanthropic or problematic allows SMEs to take a much more meaningful and proactive

approach to CSR. SMEs do not have to respond reactively towards CSR nor do they have to

struggle with understanding the strategic implications of CSR if done right. While not fool-

proof, the following 7-step approach provides a road map to SMEs in developing a CSR

Strategy in a structured manner. The steps can be followed by any organization irrespective

of size and type. While organizations can choose to tackle the steps in far greater level of

detail, SMEs can use a more simplified approach as elaborated in this section.

Committo CSR

Assess

Define

ImplementMeasure

CommunicateBusinessStrategy

CSR Strategy

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CSR Strategy – The 7 step approach:

Phase Key Action Expected Outcome

Step 1:

Preparatory

Phase*

SME to complete the ‘CSR

Assessment Tool’.

‘CSR Self-Assessment Tool’ provides an

overview of existing CSR capabilities and

helps SME define ‘quick-wins’.

Step 2:

Commitment

SME Management to indicate their

willingness to pursue a more well-

defined approach to CSR.

A letter of commitment signed by the

SME owner or CEO.

Step 3:

Assessment

List all CSR activities that can be

undertaken and apply the ‘Decision

Making Matrix’.

A set of shortlisted CSR Activities is

available with a clear purpose/objective

for pursuing each.

Step 4:

Define

The shortlisted CSR activities are

defined through a ‘CSR Road-Map’.

Completing the first half of the roadmap

provides qualitative and quantitative

targets for the CSR activities

Step 5:

Implement Complete the CSR Road Map

Competing the 2nd half of the roadmap

provides an overview of resources and

capacities required to implement CSR

Step 6:

Measure

Create simplified ‘Forms’ and

‘Procedures’ for data collection

and reporting.

The road map with the monitored data

can be used to create a simple CSR

report based on the TOC.

Step 7:

Communicate

Prioritize stakeholders who need to

be informed about CSR activities.

Develop a communication strategy to

convey findings of the CSR report.

Note: The Preparatory Phase has already been discussed in Section 2 of this document.

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Commitment:

The preparatory phase and completing the ‘CSR Self-Assessment Tool’ allows the SME’s

management team/owner to evaluate existing capabilities within its organization thus giving

it a sense of purpose to take a more strategic approach to implementing CSR.

The first step prior to the development of a CSR strategy typically involves a commitment by

the SME management team/owner to pursue CSR. This is an internal process and requires

the organization to answer to itself the question – “What is our understanding of the term

CSR and sustainability? As an organization are we willing to pursue a path that will allow us

to sustain ourselves financially while being a good social and environmental steward?”

SME Action:

Once convinced, the senior management/owner can indicate its commitment to pursue

CSR by issuing a letter with the signature of the owner or CEO.

Converting Quick Wins to Long Term CSR Activity:

At this phase, some thought needs to be given to ‘quick wins’ that has the potential to be

transformed into a more medium/long term action:

Type Quick Win Potential Long Term Action/Benefit

Society-

oriented

Organizing factory visits and

workshops for local students to

build awareness and sense of

ownership within the community.

Identifying skilled students as potential

future employees by offering internships.

This early relationship building can lead to

creating a pool of future workers.

Environment-

oriented

Conduct a simple water/carbon

footprint based on utility bills for

water and energy consumption

Implement water and energy efficiency

measures that can help reduce costs.

Annexure: Example of a simple letter of commitment

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Assessment:

The assessment phase is a 2 step approach. The first step involves making a broad list of CSR

activities that can be pursued by the SME. In keeping with the CSR Self-Assessment Tool, the

activities can be categorized using a simple tabular format:

CSR Activity (Examples) Workforce Market Society Environment

Support the construction of a local

community and sports center

Implement a quality assurance and train

workers to implement quality control

Step 2 helps shortlisting the CSR Activities based on its relevance to the organization. The

SME can choose a simple graded scoring (e.g. using a scale of 1 to 5) or choose to elaborate

further to get a qualitative (e.g. risks vs benefits) and quantitative (e.g. % impact on profits,

timeframe for implementation) overview of the shortlisted CSR activities. Both approaches

will allow the activities to be ranked based using this decision making matrix:

Decision Making Matrix Score

(1-5) Comment

E.g. Support the construction of a local community and sports center

SME: ABC Clothing Company

Profitability: Will the activity eventually benefit the

bottom line? 2

There is no direct impact on

profitability unless the sports center

has a shop that sells our clothing

Purpose: Is the activity aligned to the core

services/products that the SME offers?

Stakeholder: Will the activity improve the SME’s

relationship with stakeholders?

Issues: Does the activity focus on appropriate

issues/risks affecting the SME?

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Efficiency: Does the activity allow the SME to use

its organization efficiently?

Benefits: Does the activity lead to social,

economic and/or environment benefits?

Timeframe: Is the activity quick win/short, medium

or long term in outlook?

The Materiality Matrix

A tool often used by CSR Professionals is to develop a ‘CSR Materiality Matrix’. SMEs can

choose to combine the results from the matrix (i.e. importance to organization) with a

survey (ranking CSR activities) conducted with the SME stakeholders.

Fig 3: Materiality Matrix - CSR activities categorized

based on responsibility and size of impact

For more information, contact Grue+Hornstrup A/S, Denmark

Imp

ort

ance

to

sta

keh

old

er

Importance to organization

Low

Average

High

3

5

2

4

1

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Define:

To further distill the CSR Activities into implementable actions, it is necessary to build linkages

with the SME’s business strategy. A true synergy between the CSR and Business Strategy, as

shown in figure 2, lies in developing a ‘Business Case’. A business case in the context of CSR

calls for assigning monetary value to every aspect of CSR activity. E.g. consider the table

below which quantifies the cost to a company for retraining of new workers:

Business Case: E.g. Workers

leaving the organization

Relationship with

Manager/Boss

Reason: Lack of

Motivation Better opportunities

elsewhere

Unit cost of training a new

worker until he is up-to-speed USD 1,000 USD 1,000 USD 1,000

No. of workers leaving the

organization in year X 20 10 15

Cost for company 20,000 10,000 15,000

% impact on company

profitability in year X 0.5% 0.3% 0.2%

Potential CSR solution

(examples)

Provide training to

managers

Organize team

building activity

Bonus pay vs

performance

Cost for implementing

a CSR solution USD 5,000 USD 7,500 USD 30,000

Return on Investment 3 months 9 months 2 years

SME Action:

While, a business case can be presented directly to Chief Financial Officer and shareholders

thus providing a direct linkage between financial performance and non-financial indicators,

SMEs can pursue a more simplified approach by answering the 4 questions:

• Does the CSR Activity lead to Cost and/or Risk Reduction?

• Does the CSR Activity lead to a Competitive Advantage?

• Does the CSR Activity support in building a Reputation and Brand?

• Does the CSR Activity lead to a Win-Win Situation?

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At this point, the SMEs are expected to have greater level of clarity for each of the CSR

activities. For each of the shortlisted CSR Activities, a ‘CSR Road Map’ document as shown

below can be defined along with KPIs and Targets for the next financial year.

Stakeholder: Workforce

Objective: To provide our employees with opportunities for self-development in a challenging

environment

CSR Action - 1: Train Personnel and Promote Human Rights

Secure and train personnel, diversify and strive to protect employment, respect human rights,

and continuously improve workplaces.

Goals:

(1)Respect human rights by prohibiting discrimination in any form based on factors such as race,

gender, academic background, nationality, religion or physical characteristics. Grant fair

promotion of employees based on ability

(2)Create supportive workplace environments for employees

(3)Actively provide training opportunities for employees

Key Performance

Indicators

Targets for Year 2014

Social Environmental Economic

Women in senior

management

20% of all employees

above the rank of

manager should be

women

No impact Potential impact on

profitability of

women’s wear. No

target specified.

Number of training

programs for staff

4 per year for each

department.

1 training program

should focus on waste

management

Reduced waste will

lead to savings of

USD 2,000/year.

Lower number of

people leaving the

organization will

reduce the cost of

retaining workers

Example of a ‘CSR Road Map’ document

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Implement:

The road map can be further expanded to include additional information as shown below:

… Continued from above ‘CSR Framework Document’

CSR Decision Making Structure:

CSR Team: (State Names of Personnel, Roles and Responsibilities)

Training and Capacity Building: (Provide a description of the additional training required to make

the CSR Team competent to undertake the required activities)

Additional Resources: (State financial and non-financial resources required to successfully

implement the CSR activity)

Measures to address problems / challenges: (State the mechanism set up to secure feedback

during the implementation process and means to address the problem)

Monitoring and Reporting: (State the procedures for data monitoring against the set targets)

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Measure and Report:

“What can be monitored can be measured but what can be measured cannot always be

monitored”! Measuring and reporting is taking an increasingly important role with CSR and

assures stakeholders that a proposed program meets its set objectives and goals. Measuring

and reporting CSR can keep a track of the overall performance under a pre-defined set of

indicators (e.g. social, economic and environmental indicators).

SME Action: Monitoring

Adapting from international best practices, SMEs can develop a simple set of ‘Forms’ and

‘Procedures’ for monitoring and reporting. A ‘Form’ is a tabular data collection sheet as

shown in the example below while a ‘Procedure’ provides instructions on how the data

collection needs to be carried out (e.g. reading of electricity meter on 1st of every month +

reference no.), the persons responsible (e.g. the staff taking the reading, the manager

responsible to cross check the reading), the supporting evidence (e.g. utility bill).

Fig 4: A Monitoring Form for electricity consumption

Project Title:

Month Electricity meter

reading in MWh

Sign of Operator

(Making entry)

Electricity reading as

per Utility bill in MWh

Invoice

No.

Cross-Checked by

(Sign QC)

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

TOTAL

Form No: A1.1

Corresponding Procedure No. A1.1 Entity: Period of Data: YYYY

QA Manager Sign:

Other Details:

Validity:

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SME Action: Reporting

Reporting refers to presentation of the monitored data to broader set of stakeholders in an

easy to understand manner. Internationally there are several types of reporting standards

available. As initial step, SMEs are encouraged to follow a simplified reporting format with

the following table of contents:

Statement from SME Owner/CEO indicating commitment to CSR

Brief company profile and period of report

Workforce-oriented CSR Activities

− List the activities

− List the KPIs and targets

− Performance in current year against the targets

− Plans for next year

Society-oriented CSR Activities





Market-oriented CSR Activities





Environment-oriented CSR Activities





Summary Statement

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Key

Performance

Indicators

Targets for Year 2014 Progress in 2014

Social Environmental Economic Results % Success

Women in

senior

management

20% of all

employees

above the

rank of

manager

should be

women

No impact Potential impact

on profitability of

women’s wear.

No target

specified.

7 women

employed

equivalent

to 10% of all

employees

50%

Example of ‘CSR Road Map’ document expanded to form a ‘CSR Report’.

Communicate:

Developing a CSR Communication Strategy is about reaching out to stakeholders,

celebrating achievements and acknowledging shortcomings. A simple matrix (see below)

can help decide the stakeholders and the means of communicating the findings in the CSR

Report. It can take the form of a simple email (e.g. PDF attachment), or form part of an

advertising campaign (e.g. 60% of ABC employees are women) or form part of the annual

financial statement (e.g. printed hard copies)

Fig 5: Stakeholder prioritization matrix

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Annexure:

CSR Action Plan Version 1.0

This CSR Self-Assessment Tool is developed to support companies in Albania to self-evaluate

their current readiness on Corporate Social Responsibility and act as a starting point for

decision making to implement and integrate sustainability strategy as part of the company

business strategy.

For further queries on the tool, contact: Arindam Basu, Grue+Hornstrup A/S, Denmark.

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Instructions:

The CSR Self-Assessment Tool is designed for companies to internally evaluate the current

gap with respect to an “ideal” CSR scenario. The tool consists of 12 Sections each with 5

questions. The first 2 sections are general in nature and the sections 3-12 have a specific

orientation as elaborated in the Annexure to identify the company motivation.

The company is expected to appoint a knowledgeable person to complete the

questionnaire and for each question there are 5 possible answers:

Yes

No

Pa (Partially applicable)

NA (Not applicable)

DK (Don’t know or insufficient information or question not understood)

Instructions:

The company may provide a scoring for each answer as suggested:

Yes: +2 (Plus 2)

No: -2 (Minus 2)

Partial: +1 (Plus 1)

Not Applicable: +1 (Plus 1)

Don’t Know: 0 (Zero)

Multiplier:

The annexure at the end of the12 sections provides a multiplier for the CSR strategy or

direction that the company wants to take based on its motivation for pursuing CSR.

Multiply the score by 2 based on the top ranked ‘Orientation of CSR Activities’ for the

specified sub-sections. For example, if the top ranked motivation is environment oriented,

then the total score for Sections 8 and 9 should be multiplied by 2.

Add up the score for all sections to get the total score out of 120.

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Section 1: General Questions (Total Score: )

S.No. Questions Yes No Pa NA DK

G1.

Does the company operate within appropriate

national and regional legislations and pursue activities

that is not considered illegal?

G2. Does the company senior management understand

the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?

G3. Does the company have a written policy that highlights

the company/ management's commitment to CSR?

G4. Has the company identified a personnel from the senior

management to deal with CSR related issues?

G5. Does the company have a dedicated department or

manager for CSR?

Section 2: Management System (Total Score: )


M1.

Does the company have a system in place that allows

employees to provide feedback, recommendations,

complaints etc. to the company management?

M2.

Does the company have a system to address the

feedback, recommendations, complaints etc.

received from employees?

M3. Does the company publish audited financial results

annually and make this information publicly available?

M4. Does the company have a system to measure and

report ‘non-financial’ performance?

M5. Does the company make the information related to its

non-financial performance publicly available?

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Section 3: Labour Rights (Total Score: )


L1.

Does the company provide a written contract to all

new employees that spells out the rights, obligations

and the terms of its employment?

L2.

Does the company recognize the rights of its workers to

form unions and allow employees to discuss work

related issues in a free and fair manner?

L3.

Does the company guarantee the implementation of

the Albanian Labour Code and allow the workers to

receive paid:1) Holidays 2) Sick leave 3) Parental leave

L4.

Does the company limit the work-week of its workers to

40 hours/week and ensure adequate compensation

(financial and rest periods) for additional work hours?

L5.

Does the company provide reasonable wages to its

workers that is above the minimum wage and is

comparable to similar companies in Albania?

Section 4: Human Rights (Total Score: )


H1.

Does the company have a written ‘Code of Ethics’ on

engaging with all its employees, suppliers and other

business partners?

H2. Does the company ensure that it does not employ or

participate in forced or bonded labour in any form?

H3.

Does the company comply with minimum age

standards for its employees as elaborated in Albania’s

legislations?

H4.

Does the company have a written policy against

gender discrimination and sexual harassment in

workplace?

H5.

Does the company provide equal pay to all its workers

based on responsibility irrespective of their gender,

ethnic background or disability?

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Section 5: Work Place Diversity (Total Score: )


D1. Does the company employ people from groups that

are considered as ethnic minority*?

D2. Does the company employ people that are

considered as people with a disability?

D3. Does the company have women representation at

management level?

D4. Does the company employ people irrespective of their

religious beliefs?

D5. Does the company employ people irrespective of their

sexual orientation?

Section 6: Anti-Corruption (Total Score: )


A1. Does the company senior management take a clear

stand against corruption?

A2. Does the company have a written policy on anti-

corruption?

A3. Does the employee educate its workers against the

risks associated with corrupt practices?

A4. Does the company have a written policy or promote

anti-corruption practices with business partners?

A5.

Does the company encourage its workers to directly or

anonymously report corrupt practices either within the

organization or with business partners?

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Section 7: Health and Safety (Total Score: )


S1.

Does the company have written emergency

procedures, and a system in place to deal with

industrial accidents?

S2. Does the company provide its workers a suitable, safe

and sanitary work environment?

S3. Does the company provide training to its workers to

operate in a safe and risk-free manner?

S4. Does the company provide and require the use of

protective equipment for its operations?

S5. Does the company regularly assess and report the

health, and safety impacts of its operations?

Section 8: Environment (Total Score: )


E1.

Does the company evaluate the risks associated with

climate change on its business performance (through

its annual reports or other written document)?

E2. Does the company procure part of its energy (heat or

electricity) from renewable energy sources?

E3. Does the company take active measures to reduce

the consumption of energy and water?

E4.

Does the company regularly assess and report the

environmental impacts of its operations such as

emissions from greenhouse gases?

E5. Does the company employ any specific environmental

friendly technology in its operations?

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Section 9: Waste Management (Total Score: )


W1. Does the company operations result in discharge of

waste that are hazardous in nature?

W2. Does the company promote reuse and recycling in its

operations?

W3. Does the company take active measures to reduce

production of waste?

W4. Does the company take active measures to reduce

discharge of liquid waste or waste water?

W5. Does the company treat any waste before discharging

/ releasing them into local environment?

Section 10: Certifications and International Laws (Total Score: )


L1.

Does the company actively pursue the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights and recognize the

inherent dignity of the equal rights of all members of all

humans?

L2.

Does the company actively pursue the international

labour standards as prescribed by the International

Labour Organization (ILO)?

L3.

Does the company management recognize the risks

associated with the EU framework regulations on

combating corruption in private sector?

L4.

Does the company pursue any internationally

recognized environmental standards or certifications in

its operations?

L5. Is the company management aware of the UN Global

Compact and its 10 principles?

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Section 11: Community and Society (Total Score: )


C1. Does the company pursue any activity that are

philanthropic in nature?

C2. Does the company contribute to activities that

promote local community development?

C3. Does the company encourage its workers to actively

participate in community projects?

C4. Does the company raise awareness of its activities with

the local community in which it operates?

C5.

Does the company invite local community participants

to visit its business premises (e.g. annual open house or

a tour of the company for school children etc.)

Section 12: Business Partners (Total Score: )


P1. Does the company deal with international business

organizations (suppliers, consumer company etc.)?

P2.

Does the international business partner require the

company to comply with a minimum standard of good

practice for doing business (e.g. code of ethics, labour

standards, environmental standards etc)?

P3. Does the international business partner voluntarily

measure and report its non-financial performance?

P4.

Does the company management engage with its

domestic business partners in promoting good business

practices*

P5.

Does the company have a policy to deal with partner

organizations that do not abide with good business

practice (e.g.

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Motivation of the Company

This section is aimed at helping companies identify the type of CSR actions that they wish to pursue.

The CSR actions can be broadly classified as:

S.No. Orientation of CSR Activities Sections* Rank (1-5)

M1. Workforce oriented CSR activities

Section 3: Labour Rights

Section 4: Human Rights

Section 7: Health and Safety

M2. Society oriented CSR Activities Section 5: Work Place Diversity

Section 11: Community & Society

M3. Environment oriented CSR Activities Section 8: Environment

Section 9: Waste Management

M4. Market oriented CSR Activities

Section 6: Anti-Corruption

Section 10: Certification & Laws

Section 12: Business Partners

M5. Comprehensive CSR Activities All of the above

* Note: For column ‘B’ below, use multiplier of 2 for the top ranked (i.e. 1) sections only.

Total Score:

Section Title Score (A) Multiplier (B) Total (AxB)

1. General Questions 1

2. Management Systems 1

3. Labour Rights 1

4. Human Rights 1

5. Work Place Diversity 1

6. Anti-Corruption 1

7. Health and Safety 1

8. Environment 1

9. Waste Management 1

10. Certification & Int. Laws 1

11. Community & Society 1

12. Business Partners 1

TOTAL Score -- --

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Annexure: Additional Forms

CSR Action Plan

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CSR Action Plan

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csr framework_albania_final

Documents