Pension fund management: a trade union commitment to greater corporate social responsibility

Corporate social responsibility (CSR), in association with sustainable development, has become a live issue over the past few years. Should companies be allowed to do whatever they like in the name of competitiveness, even at the risk of compromising the future of the planet? What means does the trade union movement currently have at its disposal to influence corporate conduct in the direction of sustainable development and social responsibility? Over and above traditional trade union activities, the unions have available to them a tool, namely the funds which they manage – or jointly manage – in connection with occupational pension or employee savings schemes. By having their say in the investment strategies of these funds, trade unions can make decisions that affect corporate conduct. This is what is now known as socially responsible investment (SRI). This article sets out to explore the issue, demonstrating how we have moved on from what was initially a moral, ethical approach, geared mainly towards ‘exclusion', to a more incentive-based approach seeking to encourage companies whose conduct is more ‘responsible'. In other words, we shall show that occupational pension funds can in fact become a new weapon in the trade union armoury.