Who’s speaking up to protect shareholder democracy

Image: Glenov Brankovic

• Exxon shouldn’t be able to silence its shareholders: “Exxon Mobil’s unprecedented lawsuit against two shareholders, and latest political efforts to silence investors’ concerns., “What’s at stake, quite simply, is our future. It’s time to let corporations, politicians and money managers know: The voice of the few will not strong-arm and silence the many. At the end of the day, boards remain accountable to us” Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs wrote in the Houston Chronicle. 
• The divergence between how ExxonMobil and some of its investors view their financial interests demonstrates a new dynamic bound to grow as climate change becomes a more urgent societal challenge. TIME, May 28, 2024
• Investors are ten times more likely to support improving corporate sustainability and social responsibility, versus backtracking on such commitments and values, the latest shareholder voting season shows: while resolutions supporting greater disclosure on climate and human rights issues have generally attracted support from roughly a quarter to a third of shareholders, “anti-ESG” resolutions have garnered merely 2% support on average. Sierra Club, June 21, 2024
• Legislation opposing ESG initiatives once again dominated state legislative agendas in the 2024 sessions, but increased opposition from everyone from investors to business leaders helped quash nearly all of those efforts, a new report from policy research and advisory firm Pleiades Strategy has found. Higher costs for taxpayers—and lower returns—led to a sharp decline in lawmakers’ support for anti-ESG bills. Pleiades Strategy, June 18, 2024
• This AGM season saw worker led shareholder proposals around workplace safety and racial audits–like a Walmart associate and longtime United For Respect leader reintroduced a proposal calling for an independent review of company health and safety policies and practices—and while the proposal didn’t pass, it received a larger share of votes than any other proposal. Walmart workers also reintroduced a proposal calling on the company to conduct a racial equity audit—it got the second-largest share of votes. Newsweek, June 7, 2024.