While Proposals Against ESG are Surging, Their Suc
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Posted On: 02/11/2025 4:49:40 PM
While Proposals Against ESG are Surging, Their Success is Dismal
As the call for greater corporate responsibility over environmental, social, and governance issues among investors and shareholders grows, so does opposition to ESG initiatives. In the last few months, we’ve seen major corporations like Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan exit the Net-Zero Banking Alliance following heavy ESG backlash.
To determine the anti-ESG movement’s success rate, a new study has analyzed every anti-ESG proposal presented at general shareholder meetings within the 500 biggest public firms in America based on their revenue. The researchers classified proposals as anti-ESG if they criticized investor intervention that insists on firms being held accountable for environmental or social issues or called for a reduction in claiming corporate responsibility for ESG issues.
The study included data from the period between January 1, 2020, to June 30, 2024, with the results finding that most companies saw the number of anti-ESG proposals they received increase during the period.
In 2020, only 9 anti-ESG proposals were filed. This is a small number, especially when compared to the 92 proposals filed last year. Major companies like Alphabet, Wells Fargo and MasterCard each received numerous anti-ESG proposals, which indicate the movement’s gaining momentum. The study also determined that carbon-related issues, sustainability, and diversity and inclusion were the most common anti-ESG proposals submitted, with diversity and inclusion coming in first.
This explains why Costco recently had to justify its DEI program against a proposal which argued that the program was discriminatory and financially irresponsible.
In addition to this, the study found that the communication services, consumer cyclical, and financial services sectors were disproportionately targeted by this movement, with the financial sector bearing the brunt recently. In 2020, financial services firms received no anti-ESG proposals while those operating in the consumer cyclical sector received a lot of them. By the first half of last year though, about 29% of the anti-ESG proposals filed were meant for financial services firms.
Experts believe that this shift is partially driven by the political and religious discrimination of consumers by financial services firms. Companies in the consumer cyclical sector like Amazon, as well as those in the communication services sector like Meta and Netflix, have also recorded increases in anti-ESG proposals.
This backlash has seen Amazon and Meta roll back their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs.
Despite these increases, the study argues that anti-ESG submissions repeatedly fall short of securing majority median backing, indicating continuously low support. However, it notes that while the future is still uncertain, the presence of this movement may grow and expand its reach in the coming years.
The spread of the anti-ESG movement could, however, be countered by the increasing adoption of ESG practices by companies like First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) in different industries and verticals that push ESG implementation to a tipping point where it becomes normalized.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FSTTF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the ESGWireNews website applicable to all content provided by ESG, wherever published or re-published: https://www.ESGWireNews.com/Disclaimer
As the call for greater corporate responsibility over environmental, social, and governance issues among investors and shareholders grows, so does opposition to ESG initiatives. In the last few months, we’ve seen major corporations like Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan exit the Net-Zero Banking Alliance following heavy ESG backlash.
To determine the anti-ESG movement’s success rate, a new study has analyzed every anti-ESG proposal presented at general shareholder meetings within the 500 biggest public firms in America based on their revenue. The researchers classified proposals as anti-ESG if they criticized investor intervention that insists on firms being held accountable for environmental or social issues or called for a reduction in claiming corporate responsibility for ESG issues.
The study included data from the period between January 1, 2020, to June 30, 2024, with the results finding that most companies saw the number of anti-ESG proposals they received increase during the period.
In 2020, only 9 anti-ESG proposals were filed. This is a small number, especially when compared to the 92 proposals filed last year. Major companies like Alphabet, Wells Fargo and MasterCard each received numerous anti-ESG proposals, which indicate the movement’s gaining momentum. The study also determined that carbon-related issues, sustainability, and diversity and inclusion were the most common anti-ESG proposals submitted, with diversity and inclusion coming in first.
This explains why Costco recently had to justify its DEI program against a proposal which argued that the program was discriminatory and financially irresponsible.
In addition to this, the study found that the communication services, consumer cyclical, and financial services sectors were disproportionately targeted by this movement, with the financial sector bearing the brunt recently. In 2020, financial services firms received no anti-ESG proposals while those operating in the consumer cyclical sector received a lot of them. By the first half of last year though, about 29% of the anti-ESG proposals filed were meant for financial services firms.
Experts believe that this shift is partially driven by the political and religious discrimination of consumers by financial services firms. Companies in the consumer cyclical sector like Amazon, as well as those in the communication services sector like Meta and Netflix, have also recorded increases in anti-ESG proposals.
This backlash has seen Amazon and Meta roll back their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs.
Despite these increases, the study argues that anti-ESG submissions repeatedly fall short of securing majority median backing, indicating continuously low support. However, it notes that while the future is still uncertain, the presence of this movement may grow and expand its reach in the coming years.
The spread of the anti-ESG movement could, however, be countered by the increasing adoption of ESG practices by companies like First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) in different industries and verticals that push ESG implementation to a tipping point where it becomes normalized.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FSTTF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the ESGWireNews website applicable to all content provided by ESG, wherever published or re-published: https://www.ESGWireNews.com/Disclaimer
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