Blue Barrier Has Positive Impacts on Chinese corporations

【Abstract】： Nowadays， blue Barrier has been widely used as international protective trade measure on account of its reasonability on surface and its inherent secrets. However， blue barrier also has positive effects on Chinese corporations in terms of worker loyalty， corporate image and increasing sales.

【Key words】： blue barrier， SA8000， positive impact， Chinese corporations

Blue Barrier is a kind of protectionism under the veil of mainly concerning worker interests and rights. Its main content is concerning rights and working conditions in order to protect the blue-collar workers. （Jia Jinsi， 2007）

SA8000 （social accountability 8000 international standard） standard is the core of Blue barrier. （Li Shu， 2005） SA8000 is defined by its promoters， Social Accountability International （SAI）， as a third party auditable social standard aimed at ensuring both ethical sourcing of products and goods and workplace conditions worldwide.

SA8000 standard has been recognized worldwide. Firstly， the SA8000 standard has very specific requirements. For instance， there are 8 clauses related to basic labor rights and the worker’s welfare， including child labor， forced labor and so on. Each clause specifies the minimum standards. Then， the certification process is significantly strict， including implementation， certification， surveillance and expiration period. Given the very specific requirements and strict certification process， once been awarded the SA8000， a company will be recognized internationally， which is very beneficial for a corporation in international trades.

SA8000， as the core of blue barrier， is characterized with protectionism. And the reason for its protectionism can be revealed by means of famous quotations and data.

Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in 2000 that some countries insist on the developing countries in labor， the environment and human rights are meeting certain standards in terms of trade liberalization， this issue must be carefully handled to avoid become another pretext for protectionism. Thailand's Ministry of Industry Trade Development Office， Wei Hou Ensimaikaidi pointed out that U.S. trade partners asked the Thai electronics， textiles， clothing and other exporters comply with SA8000 standards within a year， the implementation of the new standard task is very urgent. （Feipeng Wang. 2011） What the two quotations convey is that the SA8000 standards is unequal to developing countries， and is related to trade barriers.

In addition， until 2004， among the countries that obtained the SA8000 standards certification， India and China， as developing countries， were in the top three. The chart below illustrates the industry proportions in China which have gained the SA8000 standard certification until 2004. The majority of the industries belong to labor-intensive industries， including clothes， textile. According to the two charts， the focus of the SA8000 standard is developing countries and labor-intensive industries， which can be called trade barrier or protectionism.

In conclusion， the SA8000 standards requires the developing countries to comply with the totally same standards as developed countries. And it has been a tool for developed countries to deprive the competitive advantage of the developing countries， which manifests its protective feature.

Although the SA8000 standard is featured with protectionism， it still has a positive effect for Chinese corporations. From 2002 to 2014， Chinese companies which obtained the SA8000 certificate rose from 34 to 601， which proves the Chinese company’s development in terms of social compliance. SA8000 standards， as the representative of blue barrier， forces Chinese companies to attach much importance to social compliance. In turn， obtaining the certification brings profound benefits to Chinese corporations.

The positive impacts on Chinese corporations mainly conclude increasing staff loyalty， better corporate image， and increasing customer loyalty and profits.

Firstly， since the main content of the SA8000 standard is to ensure worker rights and welfare， the workers will be more motivated， show more loyalty to the company then work harder. Secondly， the SA8000 standard helps promote corporate image. The SA8000 standards is recognized internationally. Once a company obtains the certification， it will gain better corporate image and be more competitive in international trades. Thirdly， the SA8000 standard increases customer loyalty and profits. In 2003， a survey conducted through Harris Interactive showed that when the Americans understood that a corporate’s social responsibility was in a negative move， up to 91% of people would consider buying another company's products and services. More emphasis on social responsibility， one company’s products and services more likely gain market share.

References

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作者簡介：刁小雨（1997—），女，漢，山東省泰安市人，學生，大二，單位：對外經貿大學英語學院商務英語專業。研究方向：商英英語