In this summary of the news, we will talk about the importance of the place of social issues in companies, the problem of identifying ESG data, companies that are lagging behind in due diligence and other CSR topics. One news item is particularly important to us: the media Novethic is threatened with closure.
One news item is particularly important to us: the media Novethic is threatened with closure. Novethic is the leading online media on CSR topics. For 20 years, he has been dealing with these issues with transparency and rigor across Europe. Annual subsidies could be suspended; to avoid this, employees are mobilizing and a petition is available online to support the media.
What is the company's responsibility in the mental health of employees?
According to an Ipsos survey for Axa, nearly one in four French people would suffer from a mental health problem. In parallel with this data, the French Labor Code states that companies must take “the measures necessary to ensure the safety and protect the physical and mental health of workers”.
Mental health approaches respond to a double logic: on the one hand, the improvement of the working conditions of employees, on the other hand, the improvement of the overall performance of the company by limiting turnover and absenteeism, for example.
“If there is no sincerity in the approach, it will be cosmetic” Claire Le Roy-Hatala, specialist in mental health issues at work.
EcoVadis strengthens its human rights reporting
The evaluation of the CSR performance of companies that is Ecovadis recently bought the Canadian start-up Ulula, specialized in reporting on social performance, working conditions and human rights. The evaluation body is thus sending a clear message: the social component of CSR must be considered as a strategic priority.
Future regulatory innovations should place greater emphasis on the challenges of respecting human rights and working conditions throughout the corporate value chain. For Ecovadis, this acquisition reflects a desire to further specialize its reporting and social performance evaluation tools.
For example, the start-up Ulula bought by Ecovadis had the method of directly polling workers: an inclusive approach that values more democratic corporate governance.
More than a third of businesses don't know how to identify their CSRD reporting data
A recent Tennaxia-Traace study questioned 200 companies about their extra-financial reporting policies. Thus, 36% of them do not know how to locate all of their CSRD data. This situation reflects the persistence of certain obstacles to action within organizations.
Indeed, if it wants to be a real tool for transforming business models, CSRD must be considered in all its incentives. However, this lack of visibility reveals the unpreparation of some companies to take into account all sustainability issues.
In addition, “70% of businesses express concerns about their data collection process”, which reveals the real issue of data governance. Central, their reliability and traceability will be at the heart of the audits carried out to assess their regulatory compliance...
20% of businesses are late in complying with the duty of care
The associations Sherpa, CCFD-Terres Solidaires and the cooperative company Datactivist have published their Radar on the duty of vigilance. We learn that 57 out of 279 companies affected by the duty of vigilance “would not have published their plan”.
However, the law on the duty of vigilance, established in French law, requires certain companies to implement a vigilance plan. The latter must aim at the establishment of measures to prevent social and environmental damage throughout the value chain of these large companies.
The associations point to the weakness of the judicial system to force companies on the one hand, and to effectively condemn them in case of trial on the other. However, the gradual structuring of this sector of law should lead to greater judicial efficiency in the years to come.
Who are the champions of sustainable e-commerce in France?
The consulting firm Converto, specialized in AI and data, has published its 2024 Sustainable E-Commerce Barometer. It assesses, among the 50 largest French e-commerce players, the sustainability performance of these players. The three best students are: Decathlon, Leroy Merlin and Darty.
At the top of the ranking, what sets Decathlon apart from other players is its circular economy model: repairability, reconditioning, upcycling, take-back of used products... The French equipment manufacturer meets 86% of the criteria “in terms of taking back old products”, compared to an average of 42% among the companies surveyed.
It is, in general, circularity and reconditioning that characterize the strong trend of this barometer: “in 2024, 58% of retailers offer second-hand or refurbished products”
The NEF, a French ethical bank, obtains its approval
The Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution (ACPR) and the ECB have granted NEF, a cooperative for solidarity finance, an authorization offering it the existence of a fully-fledged bank. Indeed, until today it was dependent on Crédit Copératif to exist.
The essential principles of this cooperative, which presents itself as an ethical bank, are: the financing of social and environmental projects, and a high level of transparency.
This approval theoretically allows the NEF to deploy a banking service offer for individuals, allowing them, for example, to open current accounts.
To date, “Its total savings thus reached €1.07 billion, for an outstanding credit of €816 million.”
In France, households are increasingly resorting to the repair of their objects
A recent IFOP study concerning the repair practices of French people reveals that the latter has increased sharply over the last 6 months, during which “two out of three French people have repaired an object or had it repaired”.
The main reason analyzed is purchasing power and the desire to save money. As a result of inflation, there is an increasing trend in the use of repairs rather than the purchase of a new equivalent item. It is remarkable that most of the French people interviewed claiming to repair their objects themselves refer to the numerous resources available online (video tutorials).
If it is not the primary motivation, ecology is the secondary benefit of this trend since any repair is a sign of an absence of waste.
Update on biodiversity credits
Designed on the same compensation model as carbon credits, biodiversity credits aim to be exchanged by companies to compensate for damage caused to ecosystems. Not entirely ready, their development is the subject of international criticism.
Thus, projects to restore and preserve ecosystems will generate value exchangeable in monetary instruments. The latter, in the form of biodiversity credits, could be “bought, sold or traded on a dedicated market”. In this case, a compensation market for businesses.
Like carbon credits, they are criticized for the risk of financializing and commodifying nature. Not to mention the difficulties of measuring the real value of an ecosystem, irreducible to the commercial and financial logic of traditional goods.
Novethic media threatened with closure
Launched online 20 years ago, Novethic is a media specialized in the issues of sustainability, ecological transition and sustainable finance. The Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations, the sole shareholder of the media, would have held a vote concerning a possible suspension of annual subsidies of €1.9 million, essential to the survival of Novethic.
The Editorial Director expresses her surprise at the financial rhetoric mobilized in recent years by their shareholder. Indeed, Novethic “was created for [the] mission of general interest, which is to accelerate the ecological transition”.
Employees are mobilized and a petition is available online to support the media.
Finance bill: the impossible social transition
The Government presented its finance bill (PLF2025) as well as its multi-annual strategy for financing the energy transition. In the context of the government deficit crisis, major social budget cuts are announced, risking “weigh on our ability to achieve a just transition”.
If the ecological transition budget seems to have increased, this is only the result of the high compensations paid to the renewable sectors as a direct result of the fall in electricity prices. Traditional transition policies are, for their part, experiencing real cuts in funding.
As for the SSE (social and solidarity economy), it calculates a 25% reduction in its funding. However, the needs of the ecological transition will only increase over time: 110 billion per year by 2030.
The sources
Carenews “Businesses: what are the best practices to protect the mental health of employees?”
Novethic “CSR: EcoVadis invests in human rights reporting”
Youmatter “36% of companies do not know how to locate their CSRD data”
Novethic “McDonald's, Picard, Disney... 57 French companies outside the law on duty of care”
RSE Magazine “CSR, e-commerce and sustainability: who are the best students in France?”
Novethic “Pioneer: La Nef, the first French ethical bank, takes off”
RSE Magazine “The growing repair trend in France”
Carenews “By the way, what are biodiversity credits?”
Green “The specialized media Novethic is threatened with closure”
Youmatter “Budget for the ecological transition: the social dimension is a problem”
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