Council for Inclusive Capitalism’s Post

This is one of the best reports I’ve seen this year. Thank you to the World Benchmarking Alliance for the Social Benchmark Report. The report analyses the top 2000 companies adherence to fundamental social issues of human rights, decent work and wages and ethical conduct. All the data it used to compile the report is open access and free to everyone. This is what great research and great impact looks like! Their key finding is that ❗ 90% of the 2000 largest, most influential, resource-rich companies across the globe are not even halfway to fulfilling the basics. Equality and human rights is at the core of creating a better world for all of us. It is the foundation for our societies and for our collective prosperity. Richard G. Wilkinson and Kate Pickett published a remarkable book The Spirit Level Spirit, which is one of my favourite publications on inequality. They provide compelling evidence that inequality erodes trust, increases anxiety and illness and encourages excessive consumption. That a highly unequal society does not just create social and health problems but also undermines economic efficiency for everyone. That the benefits (and negative impacts) of equality are not confined to the poorest in society but also impact the vast majority of the population. We need collaborative, concerted action to create more equal societies. We need to start listening to, and put front and centre, those who were colonised, exploited, and are still at the mercy of a financial system that privileges the 1% and damns the majority. We need these 2000 companies with the most influence, power and resource to ensure they are meeting the basic needs outlined by the Social Benchmark for their operations and their supply chains. ❤️ Respect human rights ❤️ Do your due diligence on human rights across your supply chains  ❤️ Provide decent, healthy, safe work  ❤️ Pay a living wage ❤️ Listen to and empower your workers  ❤️ Disclose your lobbying ❤️ Stop taking or paying bribes ❤️ Pay your taxes These are fundamental actions we need from every company. Equality helps us all. This is as selfish as it comes. Without respecting the fundamental principles of human rights, companies are undermining our societies and contributing to the crises currently engulfing our communities including climate chaos and the rise of the Far Right. Companies have to stand up and be champions despite the rigged financial systems that can prevent this from happening. I know so many great people in these companies doing their best and who are building more and more evidence to make sure their companies live up to their responsibility. Hopefully this report will be the latest in the long series of wake up calls that companies need to stop exploiting people (and nature) and start acting as the stewards of a more prosperous and equal world. https://lnkd.in/eVMASaBg

Opening Plenary 4, 'Social and economic inequalities as a systemic risk', Michael Herskovich says BNP Paribas takes the attitude of a universal owner and considers three themes: successful energy transition, healthy ecosystem and greater equality. From the Church Commissioners for England, Daniel Neale (FICRS) says "social inequalities can lead to risks", whether those are idiosyncratic for individual organisations or systemic. He highlights the organisation's focus on respect for human rights when looking at their portfolio and expectations on governance. David Frick of Nestlé says ""Poverty is the root cause of many big issues, such as child labour" and they have a specific supply chain programme that aims to tackle this. The company also works with its employees to define a living wage, which is above the minimum wage, and considers "responsible pricing" for consumers. Unilever's Jonathan Gill says "One of the biggest things businesses can do - and investors can encourage businesses to do" is pay living wages and that "we're thinking about sustainability issues increasingly in a holistic way. Social inequality is a fundamental problem". He adds that "tackling inequality is a fundamental aspect for sustainable economies". https://lnkd.in/djgjGzrH #ICGN2024 #conference #governance #corpgov #stewardship #sustainability #investors #assetmanagers #assetowners #risk #socialrisk

Wherever we are in the world today, inequalities of income, wealth and wellbeing are stark. Inequality is now a systemic risk, constraining growth, making our societies less resilient, and undermining our capacity to tackle complex challenges. For business, this means increased volatility, supply chain insecurity, erosion of productivity, regulatory, compliance and reputation risks, and access to capital.  Last year the The Business Commission to Tackle Inequality published a flagship report - Tackling inequality: An agenda for business action. It provides the global business community with a clear and compelling case for business to tackle inequality, as well as a common and holistic agenda for private sector action. This action agenda is made up of 10 catalytic actions that companies can take as part of efforts to address mounting inequality.    This year we will be doing more advocacy on the role of responsible business in tackling inequality through the BCTI, and working with our members on five priority action areas where companies and investors play an essential role: advancing social performance and accountability, #justtransition, #humanrights, #diversityequityinclusion, and #Livingincome & #livingwage.     We’ll be exploring some of these workstreams in a webinar on 22 February 2024, 4.00pm - 5.00pm SGT. If you are tasked with addressing these issues in your company, and interested to learn more about the WBCSD Equity Action workstreams, register here to attend the webinar  https://lnkd.in/gepCFu5u

The inaugural 2024 Social Benchmark published by the World Benchmarking Alliance reveals a stark reality: the world's 2,000 most influential companies, despite their significant economic power and employment reach, are drastically falling short in meeting fundamental societal expectations on human rights, decent work, and ethical conduct. This benchmark highlights that a mere 10% of these corporations surpass the halfway mark in these areas, leaving hundreds of millions behind and undermining global efforts towards sustainable development. The data shows a critical need for stronger regulatory frameworks and collective actions to compel these companies to fulfil their social responsibilities. The private sector’s inadequacy in these areas, particularly amidst rising inequalities and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, signals an urgent call for transformative changes to ensure that businesses contribute meaningfully to reducing poverty and fostering equity. #SustainableDevelopment #HumanRights #DecentWork #EthicalBusiness #CorporateResponsibility #SocialEquity #Sustainability #SDGs #EconomicJustice #InclusiveGrowth #BusinessEthics #SupplyChainResponsibility #Transparency #StakeholderEngagement #ClimateAction #SustainableFuture https://lnkd.in/dtgeeZW9

We know him for being a brilliant mind who spent countless solitary hours dedicated to his groundbreaking scientific theories. But Albert Einstein also cared deeply about people and fair treatment. He said: “Striving for social justice is the most valuable thing to do in life.” In the area of work and income, social justice refers to the equitable distribution of resources among people and countries, economic and social wellbeing for everyone, decent jobs with sustainable living wages, and equal access to positions of power and influence. For businesses, social justice is all about the “S” in ESG, the social dimension of sustainability. In fact, there is a lot your business can do to boost social justice inside and outside the organization. Start by asking the right questions >> https://lnkd.in/eCPyRT7F #socialjustice #socialimpact #purposedrivenbusiness 

#snsinstitutions #snsdesignthinkers #designthinking Article On: Economy and Inclusive Society Economic sharing and exchanging How will Governments, Industries and Consumers respond to the impacts of the crisis? Which extraordinary measures and innovations do we need? It is almost certain that consumers will have less income to buy new products. Will local sharing economies grow rapidly to share products and avoid buying? Will more people share their expertise and services in exchange to each other? Getting things done without paying? Creating new economics systems that will become less independent of money? Health and Welfare of Society Despite the current ‘social distancing’ civilians are taking more care of the vulnerable people in societies. Health and welfare of societies are now becoming a top priority. And isn’t that exactly what the world agreed upon during the development of the ‘ISO 26000 Guidance on social responsibility’ standard? Social Responsibility During a unique global multi-stakeholder process of six years we all agreed in 2010 upon what ‘Social Responsibility’ means, starting with: ‘Responsibility of organizations (Public and Private sector) for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour that: Contributes to sustainable development, including health and welfare of society’ One united believe Did all the ISO 26000 experts involved in this process, expected a crisis like now? Of course not, but we all shared the believe that an inclusive society should be on top of mind. Leaving no one behind. Let’s put our shoulders together to realize this society.

In the last year alone, we've increased responsible sourcing spending for local, small, and medium-sized enterprises by $8.4 million, demonstrating our commitment to catalyzing meaningful change and leaving a positive impact on the communities we serve. Our Better Tomorrow & Indigenous Reconciliation Report is here, spotlighting our nationwide achievements and reinforcing our commitment to transparency with our valued stakeholders. Corporate social responsibility isn't just a strategy for us; it's ingrained in our identity. Read more about the progress we've made in the past year > https://ow.ly/1Jvm30sByjW #BetterTomorrow #CSR #DEI

An example of what we refer to as fundamental causes of social, economic, and health inequities. Outlined in this new Oxfam report are the economic conditions that, by design, are set in place to priveldge few and to oppress and exploit many. Remember that these “causes” are modifiable—they are created and so, can be modified and undone. We could develop structures and systems that enable and ensure multi-level equity. We deserve better.

Out today! For the first time, our 2024 Social Benchmark assesses all 2,000 of the world’s most influential companies, also known as the #SDG2000. These companies directly employ 95 million people and hundreds of millions more in their supply chains. Generating 45% of GDP in revenue each year, their role in building a more equal and inclusive world has never been more crucial. Unfortunately, results show that 90% of companies are not even halfway to meeting fundamental social expectations. Only 4% pay or have a target to pay their workers a living wage. Just 3% have a working hours policy that complies with International Labour Organization’s standards. And only 5% disclose their lobbying expenditures. These numbers are bleak. What can be done to accelerate company performance? Governments can drive change by enacting regulation that clarifies what is expected and required of businesses. They can acknowledge the private sector’s vital role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals by incorporating this topic – along with an analysis of companies’ contributions – into their voluntary national reviews. Financial institutions, civil society and other stakeholders can also collectively accelerate corporate action. Learn more: https://bit.ly/SocialBM24 #SocialBenchmark2024 #bizhumanrights #WhenCompaniesValuePeople #LeaveNoOneBehind #VNRs #SDGs #corporateaccountability

📣 Today we launched our Social Benchmark, assessing 2,000 of the world's most influential companies on human rights, decent work & ethical conduct. 🔎 What does this mean? to put it simply, we have data at scale on companies' performance on topics such as the initial steps of a HRDD process, living wage, working hours, grievance mechanisms and approach to stakeholder engagement among others. The data set is so rich, but one of the key findings that stands out to me is that 80% of companies (!) fail on human rights due diligence, and that regulations, guidance and pressure are needed to accelerate change. I encourage you to explore the dataset, we published a ranking, scorecards as well as a massive dataset on 2,000 companies that allows you to filter per HQ country, HQ region, company, topic and sector, & identify trends, gaps and opportunities. https://lnkd.in/e2igpS6c So proud of our team for making this possible Namit Sofía Viviana Sarah Jill Rachel Ratih Melinda and many others