Eighty-one percent of employers say economic headwinds have reduced the prospects of activism over the last 18 months, as employees become more anxious about their jobs and less willing to rock the boat.
Even so, activism is diminished not departed, a reality underlined over the last 12 months by a series of high-profile strikes in some sectors, particularly in the UK. Employers certainly believe any reprieve is temporary: 59% expect employee activism to increase in the future. That represents a significant drop from the 72% who expected growing activism in 2021. However, the share of employers forecasting less activism in future has nearly halved, now at just 10% (down from 18% in 2021). In the politically polarised US, only 3% of employers expect a decline in activism.
Even so, prominent reports of employers still being bruised by discrimination claims and activism on environmental and social topics warn against complacency. “Sexual harassment and workplace bullying are back on the agenda,” notes Fatim Jumabhoy, Managing Partner at Herbert Smith Freehills' (HSF) Singapore office. “A lot of those complaints involve employees using social media and publicly discussing those grievances.”
While focus on the environmental and social impacts of business has recently been driven largely by employee and stakeholder activism, a raft of new sustainability...
Two Canada-based steel companies, Farjess Inc. and Royal Canadian Steel Inc., along with their part-owner and president, Feroz Jessani, have agreed to pay $19 million to resolve allegations that t...