Declaratory commitments and practical gaps: understanding equal treatment in Estonian corporate social responsible practice
By: Kristi Joamets
References
- ActionAid (2024) Towards a gender-responsive transposition of the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive. ActionAid report, 28 October. Available at: https://actionaid.org/publications/2024/towards-gender-responsive-transposition-corporate-sustainability-due-diligence (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Arredondo-Méndez, V.H., Muñoz-Molina, Y., Para-González, L. and Mascaraque-Ramírez, C. (2025) ‘Analysis of the effects of CSR and compliance programs on organizational reputation’, Systems, 13(10), p. 905. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/systems13100905
- Athayde, A. and Leoni, G. (2022) ‘Gender-responsive private standards: a tool for sustainable trade?’ SSRN Working Paper No. 4254211. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4254211
- Brieger, S.A., Anderer, S., Fröhlich, A., Bäro, A. and Meynhardt, T. (2020) ‘Too much of a good thing? On the relationship between CSR and employee work addiction’, Journal of Business Ethics, 166, pp. 311–329. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-019-04141-8
- Brügger, K. and Kock, A. (2023) ‘CSRD and ESRS: These are the to-dos for HR and labor law’, KPMG Law Insights, 11 October. Available at: https://kpmg-law.de/en/csrd-and-esrs-these-are-the-to-dos-for-hr-and-labor-law/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Bukowitz, R. (2025) ‘Sustainability Omnibus explained: 5 essential insights for businesses’, 3r, 2 March. Available at: https://www.3rsustainability.com/sustainability-omnibus-explained-insights-businesses/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Čertanec, A. (2019) ‘The connection between corporate social responsibility and corporate respect for human rights’, Danube: Law, Economics and Social Issues Review, 10(2), pp. 103–127. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2478/danb-2019-0006
- Clifford Chance (2024) Reporting on HR related topics: the impact of CSRD on the HR practice. Available at: https://www.cliffordchance.com/content/dam/cliffordchance/briefings/2024/07/esg-hr-topics-june%202024-final.pdf (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Constitution of the Republic of Estonia 1992. Eesti Vabariigi põhiseadus. RT 1992, 36, 349, entry into force 3 July.
- ‘Council directive (EU) 2022/2464 of 14 December 2022 as regards corporate sustainability reporting’ (2022) Official Journal L 322. Available at: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2022/2464/oj (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- ‘Council directive (EU) 2024/1760 of 13 June 2024 on corporate sustainability due diligence’ (2024) Official Journal L 2024/1760. Available at: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1760/oj (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Employment Contracts Act (Estonia) 2009. Töölepinguseadus (TLS). RT I 2009, 5, 35, entry into force 1 July.
- Equal Treatment Act (Estonia) 2009. Võrdse kohtlemise seadus (VõrdKS). RT I 2008, 56, 315, entry into force 1 January.
- European Commission (no date) Corporate sustainability due diligence: fostering sustainable and responsible corporate behaviour for a just transition towards a sustainable economy. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/doing-business-eu/sustainability-due-diligence-responsible-business/corporate-sustainability-due-diligence_en (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- European Commission (2001) Green Paper: promoting a European framework for corporate social responsibility. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/en/doc_01_9/DOC_01_9_EN.pdf (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- European Commission (2025) Omnibus package. Available at: https://finance.ec.europa.eu/news/omnibus-package-2025-04-01_en (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- European Council (2026) Simplification of EU rules: Omnibus packages. Available at: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/simplification/#omnibus (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- European Parliament (2000) Lisbon European Council 23 and 24 March 2000: presidency conclusions. Available at: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/summits/lis1_en.htm (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Estonian Ministry of Finance (2026a) Kestlikkusandmete avalikustamise kohustus. Available at: https://www.fin.ee/kestlikkusaruandlus/kestlikkusearuandlusetaust/kestlikkusandmete-avalikustamise-kohustus (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Estonian Ministry of Finance (2026b) Kestlikkusaruande koostamise standardid. Available at: https://www.fin.ee/kestlikkusaruandlus/aruandest (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Estonian Responsible Business Index (no date). Available at: https://indeks.csr.ee/en/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Eur-Lex (2025) Corporate sustainability due diligence. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/EN/legal-content/summary/corporate-sustainability-due-diligence.html (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Fahlgård, A., Massendgale, S. and Gustafsson, R. (2011) ‘Getting it “right”: Swedish organizations navigating gender and gender equality through a gender equality award’, Lund University Press. Available at: http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/1981858 (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Fang, L. and Guo, X. (2025) ‘From responsibility to value: ESG and long-term corporate value’, PLoS ONE, 20(4), article e0322018. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322018
- Gender Equality Act (Estonia) 2004. Soolise võrdõiguslikkuse seadus (SoVS). RT I 2004, 27, 181, entry into force 1 May.
- Global Reporting Initiative. (no date) GRI Standards by language. Available at: https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/download-the-standards/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Grace Strategic Services (2025) ‘The interplay between strategic management and corporate social responsibility’, 28 May. Available at: https://grace4success.com/the-interplay-between-strategic-management-and-corporate-social-responsibility/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- HEC (no date) What is corporate social responsibility (CSR)? Executive factsheet. Available at: https://www.hec.edu/en/what-corporate-social-responsability-csr (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Human Level (2023) ‘Embedding gender into HRDD under the upcoming EU CSDDD’, 17 March. Available at: https://www.wearehumanlevel.com/content-hub/embedding-gender-into-hrdd-under-the-upcoming-eu-csddd (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Interreg Baltic Sea Region (2025) ‘Estonian Television asks: Will ESG reporting lead to real change or remain merely a formal obligation’, 3 February. Available at: https://interreg-baltic.eu/project-posts/sustool/estonian-television-asks-will-esg-reporting-lead-to-real-change-or-remain-merely-a-formal-obligation/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- ISO (no date) ISO 26000: Social responsibility. Available at: https://www.iso.org/iso-26000-social-responsibility.html (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Jin, H., Li, X. and Li, G. (2024) ‘Impact of corporate social responsibility on employee loyalty: mediating role of person-organization fit and employee trust’, PLoS ONE, 19(3), article e0300933. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0300933
- Kooskora, M. and Arras, A. (2024) ‘Estonian top-level executives’ attitudes towards sustainability and corporate social responsibility’, in M. Kooskora and A. Kekkonen (eds) Performance challenges in organizational sustainability. Springer. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-5548-6_10
- Ma, W., Li, R.Y.M., Manta, O. and Alzuman, A. (2024) ‘Balancing wellbeing and responsibility: CSR’s role in mitigating burnout in hospitality under UN SDGs’, Sustainability, 16(8), p. 3374. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/su16083374
- Macchion, L. (2024) ‘Corporate social responsibility and risk management: charting the course for a sustainable future of the fashion industry’, Global Sustainability, 7, article e39. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2024.31
- McKinsey & Company (2023) ‘The triple play: growth, profit, and sustainability’, 9 August. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/the-triple-play-growth-profit-and-sustainability (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Meng, T., Yahya, M. H. D. H., Ashhari, Z. M., & Yu, D. (2023) ‘ESG performance, investor attention, and company reputation: Threshold model analysis based on panel data from listed companies in China’, Heliyon, 9(10), article e20974. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20974
- Mimbrero Mallado, C., Cantera Espinosa, L.M. and da Silva, J.P. (2017) ‘Aplicación del mainstreaming de género en las organizaciones a través de las certificaciones’, Estudos de Psicologia (Campinas), 34(3), pp. 423–434. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-02752017000300010
- Monti, A., Pattitoni, P., Petracci, B. and Randl, O. (2022) ‘Does corporate social responsibility impact equity risk? International evidence’, Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 59(3), pp. 825–855. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11156-022-01059-7
- OECD (2023) OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises on responsible business conduct. Available at: https://baselgovernance.org/publications/guidelines-multinational-enterprises-responsible-business-conduct (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Parisse, C.A. (2025) ‘Work–life balance and diversity management: a new approach to old problems’, Social Sciences, 14(4), article 214. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14040214
- Parrotta, P., Pozzoli, D. and Pytlikova, M. (2010) Does labor diversity affect firm productivity? Working paper. Aarhus School of Business. Available at: https://pure.au.dk/portal/en/publications/does-labor-diversity-affect-firm-productivity/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Serhane, S. (2025) ‘The multifaceted nature of corporate social responsibility: exploring the economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic dimensions’, Business Ethics and Leadership, 9(1), pp. 230–239. Available at: https://doi.org/10.61093/bel.9(1).230-239.2025
- Shankar, R.M., Abhishek, C.K. and Anusha, S. (2024) ‘Exploring the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on long-term financial sustainability of businesses’, International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts (IJCRT), 13(9). Available at: https://ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT2509112.pdf (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Strouhal, J., Horák, J., Resik, A., Gurvitš-Suits, N. and Kadak, T. (2025) ‘Stakeholders’ perceptions on ESG reporting: on the case of Czechia and Estonia’, Journal of International Studies, 18(2), pp. 75–93. Available at: https://doi.org/10.14254/2071-8330.2025/18-2/4
- Sustainable finance roadmap for Estonia (2023) EU taxonomy implementation and sustainable finance roadmap for Estonia and Latvia. Project. Available at: https://reform-support.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2023-10/Final%20Report-Estonia.pdf (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- Tziner, A. and Persoff, M. (2024) ‘The interplay between ethics, justice, corporate social responsibility, and performance management sustainability’, Frontiers in Psychology, 15, article 1323910. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1323910
- United Nations Global Compact (no date) Available at: https://unglobalcompact.org/ (Accessed: 29 July 2026).
- United Nations Industrial Development Organization (no date) ‘What is CSR?’ Available at: https://www.unido.org/our-focus/advancing-economic-competitiveness/competitive-trade-capacities-and-corporate-responsibility/corporate-social-responsibility-market-integration/what-csr (Accessed: 29 July 2020).
- Velasco-Balmaseda, E., de Celis, I. L. and Izaguirre, N.E. (2024) ‘Corporate social responsibility as a framework for gender equality: mapping of gender equality standards for sustainable development’, Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 31(3), pp. 1905–1920. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2673
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bjes-2026-0016 | Journal eISSN: 2674-4619 (formerly 2228-0596) | Journal ISSN: 2674-4600 (formerly 2228-0596)
Language: English
Page range: 61 - 78
Published online: Oct 25, 2026
Published in print: Dec 1, 2026
Published by: Tallinn University of Technology
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Keywords:
Related subjects:
© 2026 Kristi Joamets, published by Tallinn University of Technology
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.