ESG Proxy Vote Alerts
Diversity, Human Rights, ESG Pay Links, Reproductive Rights
Below are key votes for the week of MAY 30-JUNE 3.
If you are an Alphabet shareholder you will be busy next week with 15 ESG resolutions to consider about climate change, sustainability, diversity, political spending, human rights, privacy, free speech – and more.
This week, we look at the latest steps in multi-year shareholder efforts on board diversity, human rights and executive compensation. Shareholders will also weigh in on one of today’s biggest controversies – reproductive rights.
Board Diversity
Shareholders continue to push companies – such as Alphabet – to add gender and racial diversity to their boards. There is a noticeable increase in the number of women now serving on corporate boards. In fact, the majority of all new board members are women or people of color, although a large diversity gap remains.
- Vote due date: Alphabet 5/31
- Learn more: Positive Signs on the Road to Board Diversity
Human Rights
Shareholder advocacy started 50 years ago with human rights concerns about apartheid in South Africa and human rights endures as a top focus of shareholder proponents. Investor efforts have developed hand-in-hand with international guidelines to help companies improve human rights throughout their supply chains. This proxy season has seen dozens of companies face variations of a resolution that asks how companies implement their policies. Particularly timely given the May 24 Texas school massacre is a proposal at Sturm, Ruger.
- Vote due date: Alphabet 5/31, Sturm, Ruger 5/31, Kroger 6/22
- Learn more: Mandatory Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence Is Good for Investors and Business
Executive Pay ESG Incentives
Many investors think that linking ESG metrics to executive pay will motivate CEOs to address issues more forcefully. While this approach has become more common for diversity issues, environmental pay links are still rare. A resolution at Booking calls for integrating climate change metrics into executive comp.
- Vote due date: Booking Holdings 6/8
- Learn more: How to Make ESG Pay Links More Effective
Reproductive Rights
A resolution ripped from today’s headlines asks Walmart and TJX about “known and any potential risks and costs to the Company caused by enacted or proposed state policies affecting reproductive rights.” Related resolutions ask how company spending on elections and lobbying aligns with support for women, as the country awaits the U.S. Supreme Court’s expected decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
- Vote due date: Walmart 5/31, TJX 6/6
- Learn more: Misalignment Between Company Reproductive Health Policies And Influence Spending
Reminder: The VOTING DEADLINE for all U.S. companies is midnight Eastern Time on the DAY BEFORE the AGM.
Look for our Proxy Vote Alerts every week. Have a great proxy season!