The great majority of Irish people believe the corporate sector does not pay enough attention to its social responsibilities, according to a new survey. Most also feel employers are more interested in satisfying shareholders than looking after their staff.

The Amarach Consulting survey, which polled a representative sample of 500 adults in the Republic, shows that 66 per cent either agreed strongly or agreed slightly that companies do not live up to their social responsibilities. Just 11 per cent said they thought the corporate sector was doing enough.

An even larger majority - 75 per cent - said they believed many employers were now more interested in satisfying their shareholders than looking after their staff. Just 8 per cent disagreed.

The public also expressed cynicism about the commitment of Irish companies to a clean environment. Some 70 per cent of those polled said Irish firms were not paying enough attention to their treatment of the environment, with just 11 per cent believing they did.

Seven out of 10 adults believe the protection of the environment and the problems of pollution are "urgent and immediate". A further 17 per cent of those polled said these matters represented a problem for the future.

When shopping, 50 per cent said they "always" or "most of the time" tried to ensure the products they purchased were environmentally sound. Some 22 per cent said they did so `'some of the time", and 27 per cent "never".

Presented with a range of corporations and asked which they would trust to be "honest and fair", those surveyed showed a suspicion of multinationals, insurance companies and banks.

While 75 per cent of people said they trusted An Post to be honest and fair, only 26 per cent said they had such confidence in multinational companies, and 28 per cent in insurance firms.

Telecom Eireann came out well, with 64 per cent trusting the former State-owned company, compared with a ranking of just 40 per cent for the banks.