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Justice and Large Corporations

What Do Activist Shareholders Want?

University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, logsdon{at}mgt.unm.edu

Harry J. Van Buren, III

University of New Mexico, Albuquerque

Shareholder resolutions filed by socially concerned investors are a rich and underused source of data for research in social issues in the business and society field. This article examines how shareholder activists use the resolution process to advocate for issues related to social justice and corporate activities. After briefly reviewing the justice and shareholder activism literatures, the authors report the results of a study of 1,719 shareholder resolutions filed during the 1999—2005 period by members and affiliates of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, a coalition of approximately 275 religious organizations and other partners that seeks to use their investments to achieve social change. Among the findings is that the majority of justice-related resolutions dealt with employment and economic development issues. The authors conclude with a discussion of implications for corporate managers, shareholder activists, and management researchers.

Key Words: socially responsible investing • justice • shareholder resolutions • shareholder activism • social justice • economic justice • environmental justice • Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility

This version was published on December 1, 2008

Business & Society, Vol. 47, No. 4, 523-548 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0007650308316524


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