Walmart, the largest private employer in the US has announced that it will increase wages for a half-million employees, a move that comes amid persistent scrutiny of its labour practices and high employee turnover. The retail giant, which for years has been the target of widespread criticism over its low pay structure and increasing reliance on part-time workers, said that all of its United States workers would earn at least $9 an hour by April and at least $10 by next February. Some labour advocates, who are demanding $15 an hour for service workers, called the plan inadequate. Walmart has had significant trouble retaining employees in a competitive job market. The wage bump by Walmart, which has long been a pay laggard, could force other major retailers like Target and Home Depot to follow suit. (New York Times)
Corporate Reputation
World’s biggest PR firm ends relationship with American oil lobby
The world’s largest public relations firm, Edelman, is ending its lucrative relationship with America’s powerful oil lobby, the American Petroleum Institute (API), after more than a decade and at least $327 million in billings. Much of the advertising work for API was handled by an Edelman subsidiary, Blue Advertising. Blue will reportedly divest from Edelman and go on handling the oil lobby’s advertising campaigns. Over the past year, Edelman has come under growing public pressure for its ties to fossil fuel companies and industry groups which have promoted misinformation about climate change. Last year, Edelman was caught out when other major public relations firms announced they would no longer work for climate deniers, in response to a Guardianreport. Edelman later declared it too would not represent climate deniers. (The Guardian)
Technology and Innovation
Apple could start producing electric cars as soon as 2020
Apple, which has been working secretly on an electric vehicle, is pushing its team to begin as early as 2020, according to Bloomberg. The timeframe underscores the project’s aggressive goals and could set the stage for a battle with Tesla Motors and General Motors, both of which are targeting a 2017 release of an electric vehicle that can go more than 200 miles on a single charge and cost less than $40,000. The car team, which is already about 200-strong, began ramping up hiring within the past couple of months as the company sought out experts in technologies for batteries and robotics, said one source. Apple has hired five people from Massachusetts-based battery maker A123 Systems and has tried to hire battery experts from LG, Samsung Electronics, Panasonic, Toshiba, and Johnson Controls, according to a lawsuit filed this month by A123 which alleges an “aggressive campaign to poach” its employees. (Bloomberg Business)
Strategy
Global sustainability consulting market will exceed $1 billion in 2019
Spending on sustainability consulting engagements will grow from $877 million in 2015 to over $1 billion in 2019, a rate of 4% per annum, according to research firm Verdantix. “Ten years ago, the sustainability consulting market didn’t exist as a separate category of consulting work… But this is not the booming market that the Big Four accounting firms and other consultants expected or hoped for,” commented Yaowen Ma, author of the report. Fast-growing, emerging economies like China and India are not yet big spenders on sustainability consulting, says the report, which surveyed 260 heads of sustainability in 13 countries. However, it is not all bad news for the sector: “If you drill down into initiatives like supply chain compliance [or] new stock exchange rules in India… you can find growth opportunities above and beyond the unexciting 4% baseline trend,” said Rodolphe d’Arjuzon, Verdantix Managing Director. (Eco-Business)
Responsible Investment
Harvard prepares to fight fossil fuel divestment case in court
Lawyers for Harvard University will appear in court on Friday to fight off attempts to force the world’s richest university to dump coal, oil and gas companies from its $36 billion endowment. A lawsuit filed late last year by seven law students and undergraduates argues that by continuing to invest in fossil fuels, the university is putting current and future generations in danger. The students are calling for Harvard to withdraw immediately from an estimated $79 million in direct investments in coal, oil and gas companies, and begin phasing out all other investments containing fossil fuel stocks. The university and the state of Massachusetts, which is also named in the lawsuit, are asking the judge to dismiss the case. But a student sit-in at the Harvard president’s offices last week – and the rapid expansion of the campus divestment movement – suggests that the university can expect continued pressure. (The Guardian)
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