Skip to content
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
Insurance Journal - Property Casualty Industry News

Featured Stories

  • 2024 P/C Combined Ratio Best in More Than a Decade
  • Judge Backs 17% State Farm Rate Hike in California
  • Articles
  • Jobs
  • Markets

Current Magazine

current magazine
  • Read Online
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Front Page
    • National
    • International
    • Most Popular
    • Magazine
    • Forums
    • Blogs
    • Videos/Podcasts
    • Newsletters
  • News
    • Most Popular
    • National
    • International
    • East
    • Midwest
    • South Central
    • Southeast
    • West
  • Magazines
  • Research
  • Directories
  • Jobs
  • Features
    • Events
    • Forums
    • Market Directories
    • Quotes
    • Polls
    • Rankings & Awards
    • Insurance Giving Back
  • Subscribe

Companies Face Less Pressure for Climate and Social Reforms

By Ross Kerber | June 9, 2023
Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Article

Shareholder support for proxy resolutions on topics including climate change and workforce diversity dropped significantly this spring, analysts said, as tough proposals from activists met with growing political pressure on fund firms’ voting.

Halfway through the shareholder annual meetings of Russell 3000 companies, average support for voted resolutions on environmental issues was 25% through mid-May, compared with 38% for all the prior proxy season ended June 30, 2022, and 43% for all of the prior year, according to shareholder engagement firm Georgeson.

Support for resolutions on social issues fell to 20% this year so far, from 26% in 2022 and 33% in 2021, Georgeson said.

“We’ve seen a dampening effect,” said Georgeson Strategist Kilian Moote, since the drop in supports often reflected resolutions asking for steps investors deemed too burdensome.

He declined to discuss specific companies, but his description fit results like at major U.S. banks that defeated calls to wind down financing for major fossil fuel projects. At the same time, compromises with ESG advocates show executives still care about sustainability matters.

For instance, companies including Ford and eBay agreed to report more workforce details such as recruiting and retention rates in deals that led shareholder activist group As You Sow to withdraw resolutions before they were voted, said its CEO Andrew Behar.

Ford declined to comment. eBay did not return messages.

Behar added that new resolutions that got low backing stand to gain in coming years, such as a call on Exxon to account for divested assets in emissions reporting, which won 18% support. He also said Republican attacks on ESG likely depressed fund firms’ support for many items.

“Their attorneys and compliance people would be saying, ‘let’s be a little more cautious this year’,” Behar said.

Exxon did not respond to requests for comment.

State Street Global Advisors’ global head of asset stewardship Benjamin Colton said via email that while companies have become more transparent, there have been more of what he called “overly prescriptive proposals.”

“These dynamics have led to an overall decline in investor support for environment and social shareholder proposals,” Colton said.

Other top asset managers, BlackRock and Vanguard did not comment for this story.

Both have previously said they vote on a case-by-case basis and noted an increasing number of proposals affect support rates.

Average support for resolutions filed by investors opposed to ESG fell to 6% from 9%, such as one from the free-market National Center for Public Policy Research calling for IBM IBM.N to review its ESG record in China that won 7% support.

IBM declined to comment.

Scott Shepard, a director at National Center, said its resolutions still help demonstrate what he called the “partisanship” of top asset managers. Many now realize they need to take into account risks like pushing for decarbonization before new technologies are ready, he added.

“We’re seeing that reflected in the numbers” in this year’s voting results, he said.

Copyright 2025 Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Was this article valuable?

Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article.

Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it.

Here are more articles you may enjoy.

In Tesla’s Wake, More Big Companies Propose Voting ‘Dexit’ to Depart Delaware
Central US Severe Weather Outbreak Caused Billions in Damages, AccuWeather Says
Complaints About Florida Insurers Have More Than Doubled in 5 Years, or Have They?
Despite Backlash From Trump, DEI Hasn’t Disappeared at US Companies

Written By Ross Kerber

More From Author

The most important insurance news,
in your inbox every business day.

Get the insurance industry's trusted newsletter

Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Categories: National NewsTopics: climate, diversity in workplace, environmental social governance (ESG, ESG, proxy
  • Have a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk@insurancejournal.com
More News
EEOC_SealAustin Bar to Pay $42K Over Pregnancy Discrimination Lawsuit
EU to Propose Removing Business Barriers to Enhance Competitiveness Amid US Tariffs
Former Progressive CEO Renwick, 69, Dies
Hack of Contractor Was at Root of Massive Federal Data Breach
More News Features

Read This Next

  • Companies Face Less Pressure for Climate and Social Reforms
  • Bayer Seeks Roundup Settlement, Explores Monsanto Bankruptcy: Reports
  • Cybercrime Up Again
  • UK Legal Aid Hack Includes 'Significant Amount' of Personal Data
  • Auto Coverage Under a CGL Policy

Insurance Jobs

  • Outside Property Claim Representative Trainee - El Monte, CA
  • Sales Agent – Charlotte - Charlotte, NC
  • General Liability – Technical Specialist - Centennial, CO
  • Portfolio Manager, Delivery Management - Fort Lee, NJ
  • Professional Services Lead Associate Broker - New York, NY
MyNewMarkets
  • 5 Ways to Prepare for Healthcare Liability Changes in 2025
  • What's Next For Workers' Comp?
  • Soft D&O Market May Come to an End as Risk Complexities Rise
  • Exclusions: Active Assailant Coverage - Oh My!
  • 10 Things to Know About Insuring Boats & Marinas
Claims Journal
  • State Farm Still Wants a 30% Rate Increase in California
  • No NOAA Large-Disaster Data Could Hurt Insurer Grasp of Secondary Perils, Says AM Best
  • Marks & Spencer Says Cyberattack to Cost $403 Million
  • APCIA Says Record Shows 'Minimal Complaints' on Hurricane Milton, Helene Claims
  • Mitchell: Claims Frequency of Battery Electric Vehicles up as Sales Face Tariff Threat
Academy of Insurance education
  • May 22 Commercial Property: Five Bombs and How to Defuse Them
  • June 5 E&O and Hard Markets: How Trying to Keep a Client Might Cause Trouble
  • June 12 Rating AI Tools: Balancing Functionality and Security
  • June 19 Can You Hear Me? Yes, I Am Listening!

Insurance News

  • News by Region
  • News by Topic
  • Yesterday

Site Search

Features

  • Insurance Markets Directory
  • Forums
  • A.M. Best Company Ratings
  • Industry Events
  • Agencies For Sale
  • Newswire
  • Insurance Jobs
  • Rankings & Awards

Connect with us

  • Email Newsletters
  • Magazine Subscriptions
  • For Your Website
  • RSS Feeds
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Do Not Sell My Info

Insurance Journal

  • Submit News
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Reprints
  • Link to Us
  • Contact Us

Wells Media Group Network

  • Insurance Journal
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
© 2025 by Wells Media Group, Inc. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map