This week, in the world of CSR, the news is rich in initiatives and challenges to be met.
Discover the latest trends and current challenges, from the inclusion of LGBT+ people to advances towards a regenerative economy, including workplace safety challenges and the new directions of major European companies.
Happy reading!
The inclusion of LGBT+ people, an undervalued CSR issue
In the latest 2024 CSR barometer published by Vendredi, we note that only 16% of companies train and sensitize their teams to issues of gender identity and sexual orientation. However, the issue is important considering that 3 out of 10 LGBT people say they have been the object of violence or discrimination at work because of their identity.
While they feel more and more visible and integrated into their professional environments (6 out of 10 LGBT people), a study conducted by L'Autre Cercle reveals the greater difficulties encountered by trans or non-binary people.
As such, processes can be put in place by companies to promote their recognition and inclusion. Indeed, administrative routines may for example fail to recognize their identity as such.
Prevention of occupational accidents: the delay of French companies
According to CNAM and MSA 2021 data taken up by the government, 2 people die every day at work in France, and more than 100 are seriously injured. In addition, 600,000 people each year are recognized as victims of work-related accidents or illnesses. Figures that alert to a situation where France is lagging significantly behind in Europe.
At the end of April, the Ministry of Labour received an open letter from unions: “We cannot be satisfied with the current incidence of accidents at work and occupational diseases in France.”
In question, a management of “haste”, which prioritizes short-term deadlines, a fragmentation of tasks superimposed on several projects at the same time, etc. According to Dares, only “8% of French companies include work organization in their prevention policies”.
CAC40: bosses earned 130 times more than their employees
According to a recent Oxfam report, in 2022, CAC 40 managers earned on average 130 times more than the average salary of employees in their companies. The NGO denounces a situation where, despite the constant increases in the wealth produced, the distribution and “redistribution of wealth is inequitable”.
The wealth gap is widening between managers and their employees: current figures show an increase of 17% compared to 2019. Moreover, in 1979 they “only” earned 40 times the value of the SMIC. The average value of the remuneration of a CAC 40 manager in 2022 was 6.66 million euros.
Oxfam is campaigning for the establishment of a “living wage” on the one hand, and on the other hand for a change in logic: substituting financial performance for the benefit of climate performance in the conditioning of executive remuneration.
Indexing employer remuneration to climate performance: a failure
The organization As You Sow has published its second report, entitled “Pay for climate performance”, which looks at a new practice that is being talked about, but remains marginal. It consists in indexing the remuneration of CEOs and managers to the extra-financial performance of the company, in particular climate objectives.
The organization focused on the 100 largest market capitalizations in the US, which alone represent the sum of 28,000 billion dollars. From this, we can draw two revealing facts about the situation:
More than a third of businesses have no executive compensation incentive plans
Only 20 companies have a “measurable climate incentive” system
Thus, unmeasurable or not in line with the 1.5°C objective, the approach seems ineffective in the vast majority of cases.
A French start-up is getting ahead with its mini-nuclear reactor
The French start-up Jimmy has submitted an application for authorization to the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Mission. A service of the Ministry of Ecological Transition whose mission will then be to transmit the file to the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN).
With a thermal power of 10 megawatts, these mini-reactors would be intended to provide carbon-free energy to an entire industrial site. This approach is part of France's ambition for a green industry, as provided for in the law enacted in October 2023.
Two elements characterize these mini-reactors: the use of the well-known technology of high-temperature reactors (HTR) and the use of Triso fuel, “known to be very safe and accident tolerant”. The State subsidized the project to the tune of €32 million. The start-up also raised more than €17 million in 2022.
What is the “regenerative economy”?
While any economic enterprise involves the necessary extraction and consumption of natural resources, some of them claim the transition to a “regenerative economy”. It can be defined as: “restoring, renewing, and regenerating natural resources rather than exhausting them.”
The underlying logic is that limiting negative externalities is no longer sufficient as the only method of reducing business impact. To this approach, we must therefore add the ambition to produce a positive, so-called “regenerative” impact on ecosystems.
Even more, it is a question for companies to consider their full belonging to ecosystems, in which they are integrated in concert with “natural environments and human communities”.
Decrease in CSR advertising
According to the CSR advertising barometer maintained by Kantar Media, there was a 20% decrease between January and February. Indeed, their results reveal the transition from an investment of 254 million euros (January) to 209 million (February) by brands and companies.
Thus, financial investment in CSR communication “now represents 9.4% of the multi-media advertising market”. Despite the decrease observed in the television medium, it remains the largest item of expenditure in CSR advertising, accounting for nearly 12% of investments. The written press showed a remarkable growth of +52%, bringing the weight of this media in this field to 11%.
While the number of observations that CSR is a driver of development for companies is increasing, the advertising and marketing importance given to it raises the question of a certain commercial opportunism. In other words, it puts thoughts around greenwashing into perspective.
End of coal-fired power plants for G7 countries
This week, the G7 countries meeting in Turin announced the deadline of 2035 to end the production of energy from coal-fired power plants. A historic first step in line with the commitments made at COP28. This approach is all the more important as coal is the energy that emits the most Co2.
Arnaud Gilles, climate and energy advocacy officer at WWF France, says that agreeing on a date is a strong signal to the G20 countries “who expected the richest countries to take the first step”.
In terms of public policies, the challenge is to get countries around the world to adopt a road map to plan a global exit from the use of coal.
The European single market stimulates green innovation
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Patent Office (EPO) have published a study, which reveals the key role that the European single market plays in the strong dynamism of innovations and clean technologies.
The EIB and the EPO highlight two key factors in the stimulating role of the single market: economic integration on the one hand, and trade and investment facilitation on the other. Moreover, France and Germany are proving to be structuring commercial partners in this area. Between 2016 and 2021, there was a “significant increase of 33% in the number of new inventions in the field of clean technologies”.
However, SMEs highlight their difficulties in terms of financing: 30% of them “consider the lack of financing” to be an obstacle to the marketing of their innovations.
What is eco-responsible clothing?
According to ADEME, the fashion and textile industry is among the most polluting in the world, and represents 8% of global annual GHG emissions (i.e. 4 billion tons of CO2). In addition, consumers buy “40% more clothes than 15 years ago but keep them for half as long.” L'Info Durable proposes 3 criteria to which to refer to to ensure the consumption of sustainable textiles.
The material: Cotton consumes a lot of water and is dangerous for biodiversity considering the intensive use of pesticides in its cultivation. Natural organic fibers should be preferred.
The place of manufacture: The farther away they come, the more difficult it is to know under what conditions they are made. Not to mention the pollution generated by relocation.
The labels: ADEME recommends 8 labels: Fairtrade, Ecolabel, Bluesign, Bluesign, Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), Ecocert textile, BioRé, BioRé, Oeko-Tex and Demeter.
The sources:
Novethic “Remuneration of CEOs on climate goals, a practice that is still largely ineffective”
CSR Magazine “The European single market, a catalyst for the development of clean technologies”
Youmatter “How can we improve the inclusion of LGBT+ people at work?”
Le Monde “G7 countries commit to shutting down their coal-fired power plants before 2035"
Novethic ” Occupational diseases and accidents: the negligence of French companies”
Sustainable news “CAC 40 managers earned on average 130 times more than their employees in 2022, according to Oxfam”
The Media Leader “Kantar Media CSR advertising barometer: a drop of nearly 20% between January and February”
Les Echos “The start-up Jimmy is ready to build its mini-reactor”
Sustainable news: “The criteria that ensure the eco-responsibility of clothing”
Les Echos Entrepreneurs “Regenerative economy, this new concept of CSR”
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