Employees and employers are misaligned on sustainability agenda

By Fergus Halliday

October 25 2021
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Employees have a lot to offer the sustainability and other ESG agendas of businesses, if only employers could see it.

As the conversation around ESG within businesses grows louder, researchers have suggested that worker buy-in may be the missing piece of the puzzle.

New research by JLL Asia Pacific has suggested that half of surveyed employees were willing to contribute to their businesses sustainability agenda, but that a majority of employees in the APAC region were unaware of their employer’s carbon reduction goals.

According to the research, “workers care about climate change not only at a personal level, but they want to feel that their employers are aligned with their own values and are driven by purpose”.

Even if they’re typically uninvolved, employees are keeping score on the ESG commitments of their current or prospective employers.

Despite this, JLL Asia Pacific found that employers across the Asia-Pacific region struggled to align their ESG commitments with their workforce.

Sixty-five per cent of surveyed employees stated that they were unaware of their companies’ carbon reduction goals, while 60 per cent said that they weren’t involved at all.

The report framed this as a missed opportunity, noting that “being part of a company’s sustainability efforts can be a source of pride for individuals and it can provide an opportunity for alignment between both the values held by the corporates and those of their staff.”

Although it admitted that involving workers in sustainability initiatives in a meaningful way is easier said than done, the report argued that doing so is crucial for businesses that want to take their sustainability strategies to the next level.

In terms of implementing this, JLL Asia Pacific emphasised the importance of three things: making it easy for employees to engage in sustainability activities, providing time and funding for employee-led initiatives, and working to re-engage employees over the long term.

“Ensuring regular and ongoing interactions, idea sharing and reinforcing their value in the company’s sustainability journey will keep employee engagement intact,” the report argued.

JLL Asia Pacific recommended businesses with an ESG agenda consider the interdependent relationship between human capital and sustainability.

“Engaging employees in greening your business by showing them how they can make a contribution, and giving them the tools to make sustainability a part of their own lives will turn them into more satisfied workers and great ambassadors,” the report concluded.

About the author

Fergus Halliday

Fergus is a journalist for Momentum Media's nestegg and Smart Property Investment. He likes to write about money, markets, how innovation is changing the financial landscape and how younger consumers can achieve their goals in unpredictable times.

About the author

Fergus Halliday

Fergus is a journalist for Momentum Media's nestegg and Smart Property Investment. He likes to write about money, markets, how innovation is changing the financial landscape and how younger consumers can achieve their goals in unpredictable times.

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