Pharmaceutical company and CSR
Andrew Witty, the CEO of GlaxoSmithKline says that drug companies must behave in step with society and put people before profits. He says that the industry has acted as though it is detached from society causing an corrosion of trust. GSK will therefore sell one of their vaccines against diarrhoeal disease for £1.50 per dose in poor countries compared with the £30 per dose in western countries.
This is an example of the ethical responsibilities in Carroll’s CSR model. GSK has a responsibility to make profit, which it will surely do in some countries but also it has the flexibility to do the “right” thing by selling at a lower price in less well off countries. Also this brings great publicity to GSK and may therefore increase its profitability and share price in the long term.
