Investors “recognize that constructive and positive labor relations are critical to a company’s long-term success.”
New York, NY – An international coalition of major institutional investors, managing $757 billion across the global economy, sent a letter to all S&P 100 companies recently asking for information on how they protect and enhance labor rights for their U.S. employees, and how they view the proposed Employee Free Choice Act (S. 560 and H.R. 1409).
The signers of the letter are signatories to the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and believe that environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have a significant impact on long-term financial returns. Company responses to the letter will be shared with all participating PRI signatories.
The letters have been sent to companies such as Bank of America, McDonald’s and Lowe’s. In it, the investor group informs S&P 100 companies that “The freedom to form or join a union of one’s choice or not, and to bargain collectively for the terms of one’s employment, are fundamental human rights that we as global investors recognize and respect.”
Steven Heim from Boston Common Asset Management, LLC explained, “The current debate about the Employee Free Choice Act has highlighted the need to better understand a company’s position, workplace policies, and responses regarding unions and collective bargaining, and determine how companies are positioned in light of the Act and the issues it raises. This initiative seeks to gather information to identify best practices and gaps of the largest US corporations in order to generate insights which will feed into our investment decisions.”
“We believe it is in each company’s long-term best interests to reassess their policies and procedures to ensure their employees’ rights are fully protected,” said Adam Kanzer, Managing Director and General Counsel at Domini Social Investments LLC. “We encourage companies to look to the standards set by the International Labor Organization when they establish a higher standard than U.S. law, particularly in the areas of freedom of association and collective bargaining.”
“There is information from a number of sources, including internationally respected human rights organizations, that raises concerns about gaps between U.S. law and the ILO conventions, particularly freedom of association. There is a gap that could create risks for both employees and employers, said Bennett Freeman, Senior Vice President of Sustainability Research and Policy at Calvert Asset Management Company Inc.”
“As long-term investors, we want companies to create value in a sustainable way,” said Ian Greenwood, Chair of the U.K.-based Local Authority Pension Fund Forum. “Constructive labor relations can be a positive influence on productivity, foster trust and loyalty, and help attract and retain skilled staff, therefore this is an area shareholders need to be informed about. We hope this process will give us a better understanding of how US companies are addressing these challenges.”
Although individual investors within the Group may have taken a view on the Employee Free Choice Act legislation, the group as a whole has itself not formulated an official position.
A copy of the template letter at www.domini.com.
For more information please contact Steven Heim, Boston Common Asset Management, or (617) 720-5557.
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List of Signatories:
Daniel F. Pedrotty
Director, AFL-CIO Office of Investment
AFL-CIO Employees Staff Retirement Fund
Conrad MacKerron
Director, Corporate Social Responsibility Program
As You Sow Foundation
Michael O’Sullivan
President
Australian Council of Superannuation Investors
Steven Heim
Senior Vice President
Director of Social Research and Advocacy
Boston Common Asset Management, LLC
Bennett Freeman
Senior Vice President
Sustainability Research and Policy
Calvert Asset Management Company Inc.
Michael D. Underhill
Chief Investment Officer
Capital Innovations, LLC
Michael Quicke
Chief Executive
CCLA Investment Management Ltd.
Francois Meloche
Extra Financial Risk Manager
Comite Syndical National de Retraite Batirente
Adam Kanzer
Managing Director & General Counsel
Domini Social Investments LLC
Dominique Biedermann
Executive Director
Ethos Foundation
Linda E. Scott
Consultant, Corporate Governance
Governance for Owners LLP / GO USA Inc.
Stephen R. Brennan
Principal
Hamilton Lane
My-Linh Ngo
Associate Director SRI Research
Henderson Global Investors
Colin Melvin
Chief Executive
Hermes Equity Ownership Services
Jeanett Bergan
Head of Responsible Investments
Kommunal Landspensjonskasse (KLP) A/S
Ian Greenwood
Chair
Local Authority Pension Fund Forum
Mike Taylor
CEO
London Pensions Fund Authority
Greg Sword
CEO
LUCRF Super
Gary A. Hawton
Chief Executive Officer
Meritas Mutual Funds
Jay Youngdahl
Co-Chair, Board of Trustees
Middletown Works VEBA
Luan Steinhilber
Director of Social Research
Miller/Howard Investments
Michael Kramer, AIF ®
Managing Partner & Director of Social Research
Natural Investments, LLC
Campbell Watterson
Deputy Chief Investment Officer
Newton Investment Management Limited
Julie Fox Gorte
Senior Vice President, Sustainable Investing
Pax World Management Corporation
Peter Damgaard Jensen
Chief Executive Officer
Pensionskassernes Administration (PKA) A/S
Richard W. Torgerson
President & Director of Research
Progressive Asset Management
Hans Aasnæs
Chief Executive Officer
Storebrand Investments
Stephen Viederman
Finance Committee
The Christopher Reynolds Foundation
Ian Jones
Head of Responsible Investment
The Co-operative Asset Management
Victor De Luca
President
The Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation
Lance E. Lindblom
President & CEO
The Nathan Cummings Foundation
Amy Domini
Private Trustee
The Sustainability Group at Loring, Wolcott, & Coolidge
Kathryn O’Neill
Director of Corporate Social Responsibility
The United Church Foundation
Therese Niklasson
Head of Governance and SRI
Threadneedle Asset Management
Shelley Alpern
Vice President
Trillium Asset Management Corporation
Timothy Smith
Senior Vice President
Environmental, Social and Governance Group
Walden Asset Management, a division of
Boston Trust and Investment Management Corp
