Corporate social responsibility in coal industry (practices of russian and european companies)

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is built on interaction between companies and the society which is especially important for major companies that exploit natural resources and play the role of city-forming socially significant entities. Various interpretations of the notion of social responsibility define the varying levels of influence companies have on the society, different levels of contribution of companies in the said process and the degree and level of implementation of CSR. The relations between social responsibility and economic results and the effects of implementing CSR policies are often not obvious.This study offers an assessment of present-day state of corporate social responsibility policies in coal companies of Russia and Poland and formulates proposals on implementing social responsibility projects with consideration of state-of-the-art CSR concepts.The results of the study are as follows: the achieved level of social responsibility in coal companies of Russia and Poland has been assessed; it is proven that most companies in the coal industry are at the level of fragmentary application of CSR concepts; an analysis has been carried out of tools available in the area of social responsibility of coal companies.