Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure today to speak to Motion No. 455. The potential exists in terms of corporate responsibility.
One of the most dramatic examples of negligence on the part of corporate Canada was the 1992 Westray explosion which killed 26 miners. It was a disaster that did not need to happen, but it did. My hon. colleague from the Conservative Party should be commended for putting this motion forward.
Motion No. 455 deals with some very hard questions. It states very clearly that corporate executives cannot hide behind their titles when they engage in behaviour that has proven to be negligent or harmful to the people working under them.
We must also ensure that Motion No. 455 is not used as a cudgel to slam on the head of the executive world when it is not negligent and not responsible. In other words, we cannot use it as an action to make the corporate world responsible for things when it is not. We want to ensure that individuals, inside and outside corporate Canada, are dealt with equally and fairly under the law. Executives will not be able to hide behind their job titles in the commission of their duties.
We are also looking at a larger paradigm shift. We should look at the issue of corporate responsibility and the opportunities that exist. Historically, we have not examined the enormous opportunities the corporate world has for social good.
Some companies have done an incredible job, such as Ben & Jerry's in the United States. It is a great giver and has an enormous amount of social concern and responsibility. Through its company, it has managed to improve the health and welfare of those people who are less privileged than most of us. There are many examples of companies in Canada that have used their powers as corporations to help individuals in our country.
Corporate Canada has two roles: to make a profit, which is extremely important, and to provide jobs and such that makes our country run. Profit is a good thing but a balance has to be struck between making a profit and the cost that is sometimes incurred by the behaviour of those companies.
We have not looked at the balance between making a profit and ensuring that a company is ethical and is not engaging in activities which could hurt the collective good and the people. We must have a balance between making a profit and the actions of the company and the costs.
Southwest Airlines in the United States is thriving and making a huge profit, but it is also very socially responsible. It treats its employees fairly and does an incredible social job within its region. This company has managed to strike the balance between profit making and corporate responsibility.
Rather than sacrificing profits, Southwest Airlines is one of the healthiest airlines in the United States. It is healthy because it managed to marry corporate responsibility with profit and managed to ensure that its employees bought into this exciting paradigm shift.
Profit sharing on the part of the employees and the owners is a very good thing. It actually ensures that their employees will derive benefits from their actions. This tends to make employees work harder and more effectively, which would benefit the company.
This change or paradigm shift in our thinking of corporate responsibility does need to be applied just to the private sector. It can be applied to government. Why not have public service employees deriving financial benefits from doing their jobs. If a department was able to meet or cut its budget then a percentage of that could be shared by the employees of that department. Right now we do not have that.
Today, when a government department sees it is going to have a surplus at the end of the year, it tries to spend the surplus so it will not have its budget cut in the next year. Why not give a percentage of that savings to the people who have, through their actions of wise spending and through their responsible actions as employees, managed to save money for the taxpayer. The taxpayer would still derive the benefit because their money would not have been wasted. The people who made sure that they spent wisely would also derive a financial benefit. It is a win-win situation. It would also ensure that the public sector would be working more effectively, which we would all applaud.
The issue of corporate responsibility can also be applied to the actions of corporations internationally. Actions by corporations have destroyed environments and decimated social structures abroad. We mentioned the issue of the Sydney tar ponds where actions by companies clearly poisoned the surrounding environment. We cannot allow this to happen.
Motion No. 455 brings up a very exciting point about making those people who engage in that type of behaviour responsible. It also provides a window for the other side of the coin which is to use the private sector for the public good. The beauty of Motion No. 455 is that it deals with both sides.
The explicit part of Motion No. 455 is a punitive one which must be done and should be looked at least. We believe in studying this to ensure that companies cannot compromise the health and welfare of their employees and other people. Also there lies an opportunity to do public good.
Some companies that work abroad work in very impoverished lands. We must also consider those companies that work in impoverished lands or in countries where a despot is abusing the people, such as what occurred in Nigeria in the past. Canadian companies working in those areas should have an obligation to invest part of their profits into social programs for the people, basic programs such as health and education. Companies must also ensure that their employees are paid fairly, not on a Canadian wage basis, but in terms of the country in which they are operating.
That is a very powerful thing for the surrounding people in that country. Canadian companies working abroad can be used as a powerful tool for ensuring social stability and improving the social structures within countries which in many cases are some of the most impoverished lands in the world.
I have to wrap up so I will summarize by saying that Motion No. 455 has some excellent points. I commend the member from the Conservative Party for putting it forward. We need to study this to ensure that those in corporate Canada do not hide behind their titles and abuse the people. The other side is to use this as a window for corporate Canada to engage in public good not only within our country but also abroad.