Barrick Gold Corporation has been under close examination by the public as questions of their business ethics have been brought up. The company has been receiving negative media attention, and the scrutiny only continues as Geoffrey York of The Globe and Mail reports “Deadly clashes continue at African Barrick gold mine”. The company has been trying to avoid dealing with the problem at hand and continuing with their usual mining in the area. Only after several reports and the creation of bad will has Barrick discussed the situation and announced solutions currently in progress. The unethical nature of the company has shocked many. Not only has the company been involved in the deaths of several civilians, but they have been more concerned with the running of their company and making profits for shareholders than the community in which they operate.
A company of good will is one that considers all of their stakeholders and cares about each of them. The community that a company involves itself in should be valued equally to all other stakeholders. Edward Freeman suggests in his stakeholder theory that a business that is not a good citizen and doesn’t pay attention to the quality of life in the community or the effects in which they have on civil society is a business in decline. If Barrick Gold wants to correct this problem they should take a step back to look at everyone that they affect, and consider all of the stakeholders in their company.
Sources:
http://business-humanrights.org/en/african-barrick-gold-lawsuit-re-tanzania
https://www.youtube.com/embed/bIRUaLcvPe8