Effects of multinational companies’ Corporate Social Responbility (CSE) commitments of the Peruvian labor market: the experience of Topy Top

Abstract

This paper studies the impact that the social responsibility commitments of multinational companies are can have in the settlement of labor disputes that arise in its supply chain through a landmark case that occurred in Peru. There, the en masse dismissal of union members and their representatives by the textiles company Topy Top was resolved through the intervention of two international brands that were clients of that company. This intervention not only enabled the reinstatement of the workers, but also generated a series of instruments designed to develop a mature system of industrial relations. Through an analysis of the agreements and instruments adopted and the way the relationship between the company and the union developed thereafter, we evaluate the role that multinational companies can assume to ensure the compliance of fundamental labor rights.