The Valuable 500 has launched a white paper on ‘ESG and Disability Data: A Call for Inclusive Reporting’, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) today.
The white paper revealed that just 22% of Valuable 500 companies publicly disclosed workforce representation of disability (self-ID) percentages in FY 2020-21 Annual Reports and Accounts (ARAs), ESG and Sustainability Reports.
Low levels of disability disclosure and lack of standardised reporting criteria make comparisons between organisations incredibly challenging, noted the report. The Valuable 500’s white paper has identified three key levers of change to address these barriers: ARAs & sustainability reports, investor dialogue, and materiality assessments.
ABSENT DISABILITY INCLUSION
Disability inclusion also strikingly absent from standardised key performance indicators (KPIs) through which organisations measure their impact and the value they bring to society. The exclusion of disability and accessibility from investor-grade environmental, social and governance (ESG) data has far-reaching implications across the landscape of global business because of the size and scale of the population with disabilities.
The white paper report encourages leaders of the Valuable 500 companies to adopt and disclose against five key KPIs to create a comparable baseline that measures progress on disability inclusion. The five Disability Inclusion KPIs include:
- Workforce Representation
- Goals
- Training
- Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)
- Digital Accessibility
DISABILITY PERFORMANCE & DISCLOSURE
“Traditionally, financial KPIs have dominated corporate reports. More recently, we observe rising interest from customers and investors in a more holistic view of companies’ health, including customer satisfaction, stakeholder trust and workforce metrics,” commented Oliver Bäte, CEO of Allianz. “Increased disclosure of non-financial indicators – like the Valuable 500 Disability Inclusion KPIs – drives important corporate change and translates reliably into competitive and financial advantage.
David Schwimmer, Chief Executive Officer of London Stock Exchange Group agreed: “With more than 22 million employees represented in 41 countries across 64 sectors, the reach of the Valuable 500 companies is substantial. By adopting and disclosing against the five KPIs proposed in the white paper, the Valuable 500 companies can provide leadership on disability disclosure, acting as a catalyst for the corporate change we need.”.
“Recognising that disability performance is topical in ARAs & sustainability reports, investor dialogue, and materiality assessments is central to the role the Valuable 500 plays in setting a precedent for disability inclusion in business,” added Rhiannon Parker, Chief Innovation Officer at the Valuable 500.
INCLUSIVE REPORTING
More companies like Microsoft have also pledged to report on disability performance to address the disability employment gap. “Microsoft is committed to ongoing and transparent public reporting of disability performance which is a necessary step to addressing the disability divide,” stated Teresa Hutson, VP of Technology and Corporate Responsibility at Microsoft.
The vision set out in the white paper can help guide companies on their journey towards more inclusive reporting and is supported by Iconic members of the Valuable 500 including EY, Microsoft, Mahindra, and Sky. The work on inclusive reporting has been co-funded and developed with 2 of the Iconic members of the Valuable 500, Allianz, and London Stock Exchange Group, in partnership with Tortoise Media.
Download the Valuable 500 white paper ESG and Disabiity Data: A Call For Inclusive Reporting here.
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