Environmentalism is becoming a big deal. More and more companies, including
Wal-Mart (
WMT), are
jumping on the environmental bandwagon, straining themselves to make changes so
that they can show consumers how environmentally conscious they are.
But
even as sales of the Toyota (
TM) Prius and
other hybrids go up, the fact is that there are near-slave labor conditions at
some assembly plants in Japan.
Green Biz reports on some of the problems that environmental
enthusiasts are ignoring:
One-third of assembly line workers are poorly paid temp
workers. Its parts supply chain is 'riddled with sweatshop abuse,' including
trafficking of tens of thousands of foreign guest workers, sometimes working
16-hour shifts. ...
Yes, it's great that Wal-Mart has made a raft of
commitments to reduce waste and increase energy efficiency, but many of those
promises have worker safety implications the environmental groups and company
seem willing to ignore.
This information should
encourage a new, ethical, level of scrutiny to environmentally-friendly
investing. Is it right to save the earth but ignore the plight of thousands of
workers in sub-standard conditions? On the flip side, what about supporting
companies that provide opportunities to the poverty-stricken, but whose
environmental practices are questionable?
There are
companies out there with practices that are more friendly toward the
environment, that treat their workers and suppliers with dignity and humanity.
But they are few and far between, especially among the more solid earners.
(Starbucks --
SBUX -- is
one, but, though its share price is up right now, it is still having earnings
issues.)
With proxy voting season nearly over, we are
reminded that we can use our voices as shareholders to work for change in the
companies that we invest in, rewarding them for progress in the right direction.
Perhaps it is time to start including human costs with environmental costs when
we talk about sustainability? Or maybe we can work on one thing at a time. But
that means that we may need to prioritize our investments: People first? Or the
environment?
Disclosure: I own none of the stocks
listed above. After writing this, I'm trying to decide if I still want to buy a
Prius.
