Improving Working Conditions in Global Supply Chains: The Role of Institutional Environments and Monitoring Program Design
基于一家大型社会审计机构的数千次审计数据，研究发现供应商在面临非政府组织和媒体曝光风险更高时，以及其买家曾因供应链劳工问题遭受负面宣传时，工作条件改善更多；预先通知的审计和高培训水平的审计员也显著促进改善，但不同违规类型存在差异。
Activism seeking to improve labor conditions in global supply chains has led many transnational corporations to adopt codes of conduct and to monitor suppliers for compliance. Drawing on thousands of audits conducted by a major social auditor, the authors identify structural contingencies in the institutional environment and program design under which codes and monitoring are more likely to be associated with improvements in conditions. At the institutional level, suppliers improve more when they face greater risk that nongovernmental organizations and the press will expose harmful working conditions. They also improve more when their buyers have experienced negative publicity for supply chain labor abuses. At the program design level, suppliers improve more on average when audits are pre-announced, when auditors are highly trained, and especially when both elements are present. Extended analysis of variations across violation types reveals nuances to these findings. For instance, pre-announced audits were followed by greater improvement in occupational safety and health practices but not child labor practices. These findings can inform strategies for improving supply chain working conditions.