A report compiled by the responsible investment campaign group ShareAction found that, out of 279 environmental, social and governance (ESG) shareholder resolutions put forward at annual general meetings last year in the UK, Europe and the US, only four – or 1.4% – secured majority support.
ShareAction’s Voting Matters report illustrates the growing divide between asset managers on either side of the Atlantic, with those in the UK and Europe supporting 81% of shareholder ESG proposals on average last year, compared with US peers, who supported just 25% of proposals last year.
For the 2024 proxy year, we found that most environmental and social shareholder proposals were overreaching, lacked economic merit, or were unlikely to promote long-term shareholder value.” It noted that clients had the power to cast votes themselves, including in favour of shareholder resolutions.
The campaign group claimed that, had asset managers thrown their weight behind shareholder resolutions, they could have helped improve conditions for low-paid workers struggling with the global cost-of-living crisis and driven climate action at a time when the impact of the climate crisis is devastating communities worldwide.
Support for shareholder proposals aimed at tackling environmental and social risks hit a record low last year, figures show, amid a “worrying retreat” by investors, particularly in the US.
