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Do Leveraged Firms Underinvest in Corporate Social Responsibility? Evidence from Health and Safety Programs in U.S. Firms

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  • Christophe Moussu

    (ESCP Europe and Labex Refi)

  • Steve Ohana

    (ESCP Europe and Labex Refi)

Abstract

The explosion of health-related costs in U.S. firms over more than a decade is a huge concern for managers. The initiation of Health and Safety (H&S) programs at the firm level is an adequate Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative to contain this evolution. However, in spite of their documented efficiency, firms underinvest in those programs. This appears as a puzzle for health economists. In this paper, we uncover a strong negative relation of financial leverage to the implementation of H&S programs. The negative impact of debt on investment and CSR activities is generally interpreted as an efficient disciplinary effect of debt on managers. H&S are particularly well suited to revisit this evidence, given their strong profitability and homogeneity across firms. Very interestingly, the negative effect is stronger for firms with high free cash flows, for which debt is used to prevent overinvestment. This strongly suggests that debt, while disciplining managers, also discourages investments which are valuable both for firms and society.

Suggested Citation

  • Christophe Moussu & Steve Ohana, 2016. "Do Leveraged Firms Underinvest in Corporate Social Responsibility? Evidence from Health and Safety Programs in U.S. Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 135(4), pages 715-729, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:135:y:2016:i:4:d:10.1007_s10551-014-2493-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-014-2493-0
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    3. Luo, Yi & Ma, Jian & Wang, Yu & Ye, Aishan, 2022. "Board internationalization and corporate social responsibility," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    4. Ine Paeleman & Nadja Guenster & Tom Vanacker & Ana Cristina O. Siqueira, 2024. "The Consequences of Financial Leverage: Certified B Corporations’ Advantages Compared to Common Commercial Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(3), pages 507-523, January.
    5. Tiago Loncan & Styliani Panetsidou & Angelos Synapis, 2024. "Leverage, investment and institutional environments: Evidence from emerging markets," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 849-866, January.
    6. Oscar Rikhotso & Thabiso John Morodi & Daniel Masilu Masekameni, 2022. "The Extent of Occupational Health Hazard Impact on Workers: Documentary Evidence from National Occupational Disease Statistics and Selected South African Companies’ Voluntary Corporate Social Responsi," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-25, August.
    7. Omer Unsal & M. Kabir Hassan, 2020. "Employee lawsuits and capital structure," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 14(3), pages 663-704, June.
    8. Blake Rayfield & Omer Unsal, 2019. "Employee Disputes and Innovation Performance: Evidence from Pharmaceutical Industry," NFI Working Papers 2019-WP-01, Indiana State University, Scott College of Business, Networks Financial Institute.
    9. Xiangyu Chen & Peng Wan, 2020. "Social trust and corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 485-500, March.
    10. Gaowen Kong & T. Dongmin Kong & Ni Qin & Li Yu, 2023. "Ethnic Diversity, Trust and Corporate Social Responsibility: The Moderating Effects of Marketization and Language," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 187(3), pages 449-471, October.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Debt; Investment; Health and safety programs; Corporate Social Responsibility;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

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