Internal Corporate Social Responsibility and Multilevel Labour Management in Fishing Organisations: A PLS-SEM Sequential Mediation Model for Sustainable Decent Work

The fishing processing industry in Chimbote, Peru, reflects structural vulnerabilities typical of high-informality extractive sectors, including precarious working conditions and limited internal corporate social responsibility (ICSR), hindering progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 8 (SDG 8). Although prior research has linked ICSR to positive employee outcomes, the multilevel mechanisms through which these effects translate into organisational outcomes remain insufficiently understood. This study examines the relationship between ICSR and labour management through a multilevel sequential framework. Using survey data from 384 workers in fishing processing firms, a structural model was estimated to analyse the pathways linking ICSR with individual-, group-, and organisational-level labour management. The findings reveal that ICSR does not directly predict organisational-level outcomes. Instead, its effects operate through a sequential bottom-up process, where ICSR is associated with individual-level labour management, which in turn relates to group-level dynamics, ultimately contributing to organisational-level outcomes. This indirect-only mechanism highlights the central role of individual and group processes in translating organisational practices into broader organisational effects. These results contribute to the literature by providing empirical evidence of a multilevel transmission mechanism in a high-informality context, extending current understanding of ICSR beyond single-level models. From a practical perspective, the findings suggest that organisations seeking to improve labour conditions should prioritise interventions at the individual and group levels to achieve sustainable organisational outcomes aligned with SDG 8.