Gender pay gap deadline: 78% of UK companies pay men more than women, figures reveal
Almost eight in 10 large UK companies and public- sector bodies pay men more than women, the latest gender pay gap reporting has revealed. After the deadline to publish passed at midnight on Wednesday, around 1,500 organisations with over 250 employees had yet to report. More than 10,015 companies met the deadline, with 78 percent of those revealing that they pay men more than women, on average. Of the remaining employers, 8 percent claimed that they have no gender pay gap and 14 percent reported one in favour of women. More than 15 percent of employers left it to the last minute, sending their information between Tuesday at 4pm and the cut-off point. A further 10 companies had submitted their figures after the deadline by 8am on Thursday. (Independent)
Corporate Reputation
BHP Billiton quits global coal lobby group over differences on climate change
BHP Billiton has announced that it had made the decision to leave the World Coal Association (WCA) over differences on climate change but will remain a member of the US Chamber of Commerce. “In light of the material difference identified by the review and the narrow range of activities of benefit to BHP from membership, BHP has reached a final view that it will cease membership of the WCA,” BHP said in a statement. The WCA said it was disappointed with BHP’s decision, especially given that BHP had been involved in developing the association’s position on energy and climate change. BHP said that while it had identified material differences in its stance with the US Chamber of Commerce, the largest US business lobby, there were other benefits from the activities with the group. (Independent)
Lawsuits
Royal Dutch Shell threatened with climate change legal action
Royal Dutch Shell has been threatened with legal action aimed at forcing the oil and gas group to shift away from fossil fuels in support of efforts to tackle climate change. Friends of the Earth, the environmental group, said it would file a lawsuit in the Netherlands if Shell failed to commit within eight weeks to bring its business in to line with the Paris climate agreement. Whilst Shell has gone further than most of its peers by setting an “ambition” to reduce its carbon footprint by 50 percent by 2050 Friends of the Earth claim that this is not enough to meet the Paris goal. Whilst climate lawsuits have been filed against oil and gas companies in the US Friends of the Earth have said that its potential lawsuit was the first that aimed to force a change of corporate policy rather than seeking compensation. (Financial Times*)
Waste
Report: Drop in plastic bags in British seas linked to introduction of 5p charge
A big drop in plastic bags found in the seas around Britain has been credited to the introduction of charges for plastic bags across Europe. Scientists have found that there has been an approximately 30% drop in plastic bags on the seabed in a large area from close to Norway and Germany to northern France, and west of Ireland. The authors of the study claim that the drop-in plastic bag pollution, measured from 2010 approximately the mid-point of charging policies coming into force, showed the power of such levies. “The fewer bags we use, the fewer we can lose, the fewer we can put into the environment,” said Thomas Maes of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, lead author of the paper. (Guardian)
Supply Chain
Hershey to spend $500 million to make its chocolate more sustainable
Hershey is spending $500 million in the pursuit of producing its iconic chocolate Kisses from more sustainable cocoa. Through its Cocoa for Good program, the company will invest the funds through 2030 to support four key areas: nourishing children, empowering youth, building prosperous communities and preserving natural ecosystems. The initiative’s goals include eliminating child labour and increasing shade-grown cocoa, which can be productive for as much as 15 years longer than plants grown in full sun. The program will start with a focus on Ivory Coast and Ghana, the world’s top cocoa producers, with plans to reach other areas of production including those within South America. This new program builds on Hershey’s previous efforts to increase its buying of certified and sustainable cocoa, which accounted for more than 75 percent of its total cocoa purchases in 2017, with the aim being to reach 100 percent by 2020. (Bloomberg)
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