The Role of Pressure Groups (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Business): Revision Note

Introduction to pressure groups

• Pressure groups are organisations, or groups of people, that seek to influence the policies and actions of businesses or governments

• Their primary objective is to promote a specific cause or agenda

• Pressure groups want a business to support their cause or take action on an issue

  • For example, an animal rights group may want a clothing company to stop using animal products in their clothing

• They can operate on a national or international scale 

  • Save the Arctic campaigned for Lego not to sell their products at Shell petrol stations

  • Greenpeace campaigned for Kimberley Clark (the manufacturer of products such as Kleenex and Huggies) to dispose of their products in a sustainable way

How pressure groups influence business decisions

Naming and shaming

• Pressure groups often publish reports or use social media to expose businesses behaving unethically

• This can damage the business’s reputation and reduce public trust

  • For example, in 2022, Greenpeace publicly criticised Coca-Cola for being one of the world’s biggest plastic polluters

    • This naming and shaming led to media attention and public pressure on the company to improve its packaging

Direct action

• This includes protests, strikes, boycotts and other public demonstrations to draw attention to an issue and pressure the business to change its behaviour

• For example, pressure group Extinction Rebellion staged protests outside Barclays Bank branches to demand the bank stopped funding fossil fuel projects

  • These protests have affected customer views and generated negative media headlines

Lobbying

• Pressure groups may meet with government officials or provide evidence to encourage changes in laws or regulations that affect business practices

• For example, the Living Wage Foundation has lobbied the UK government to increase the minimum wage and encourages businesses to adopt the higher 'living wage'

  • This has influenced major companies like Lidl and Aviva to increase employee pay

Other pressure group actions

• Starting online campaigns or petitions that go viral

• Partnering with celebrities or influencers to spread a message

• Taking legal action or supporting court cases against companies