The corporation known as Johnson and Johnson was founded in 1886 and incorporated in 1943. Its chairman from 1932 to 1963, Robert Wood Johnson, wrote a credo in 1943, which if corporations of America actually believed in and followed this credo, this country would be in a far superior position than it currently resides, because this credo is one that demonstrates that corporations have a responsibility to do right by the community that they are an integral part of, and by the people that they employ, along with the customers that so purchase their products.
For instance, Johnson wrote that the corporation needed to “…maintain reasonable prices,” of which so many corporations of today aren’t especially interested in reasonable prices, but rather desire to get as much out of the pockets of consumers as they possibly can. Additionally, way before diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) became part of the American lexicon, Johnson wrote that “we must provide an inclusive work environment...” He also wrote that “compensation must be fair and accurate,” and also “there must be equal opportunity for employment…” Furthermore, we find that Johnson wrote “We are responsible to the communities in which we live and work..” along with “bear our fair shares of taxes,” and also that we need to protect “…the environment and natural resources.”
Not only was Johnson’s credo brilliant in its concepts and his expression of those deeply held beliefs, but all this remains as relevant today as it was back when it was first written, and quite frankly should be part and parcel of what all corporations should be held fully accountable to, because corporations need to be good citizens of the state, which, after all, have permitted their existence in the first place, which thereby means that they need to do right by the employees that they hire, along with being in harmony with the environment that we all live and breathe in, and also serve well the people that are its consumers. This isn’t really a high ask, at all, but is a reasonable request that corporations understand better that their objective should not be exclusively about money, money, and more money. but rather it should be about providing fair products at a fair price, and to take care of its own in a fair manner.
Instead, we seemingly live in an age of unending greed, that seems insatiable for a lot of corporations today, of which, the objective of far too many corporations, is to “game” the system, so that they receive from the state, tax abatements and tax avoidance of all types, and seemingly take pride in paying the least amount of taxes that they can thus successfully avert, by using all sorts of financial shenanigans to cheat the system, and thereby put the burden of paying taxes onto the backs of American citizens, throughout this great nation.
Indeed, it has to be remembered that corporations are artificial constructs of the state, and should thereby be held to the fullest account to their responsibilities of that state, of which, those responsibilities start at the principle that they need to be good corporate citizens, so proven by these corporations being focused not exclusively upon profit, above all, but rather by doing right by all those that they are in contact with, which demonstrates corporate responsibility, for the good of the people, and of this country.