More employees want firmer action on pollution

A growing number of employees think businesses are not doing enough to tackle climate change, according to a new survey.

It found that 55% want companies to do more, up from 45% in 2019, and offering a stark warning ahead of the COP26 summit in Glasgow in November.

The survey of 1,000 people last week by the personal behaviour app Pawprint revealed that only 14% believe UK business actions are adequate.

Younger females were the most scathing about a lack of business action with 63% of 18 to 24-year-olds claiming that UK businesses “simply aren’t doing enough”.

Almost a third (30%) of millennials would consider changing jobs if their current employer was not doing enough for sustainability, while 33% of all ages of employees working in travel and tourism would also consider changing jobs based on their employers climate action..

Overall, 59% of employees say it is important or very important that their employer has a strategy for tackling climate change. Amongst Gen Z, this number rises to a staggering 71%.

Employees questioned feel differently across different industries with 70% of employees in the public sector believing it’s important that their employer has a strategy for tackling climate change. The public sector ranked highest across the nine industries looked at, with professional services and construction tying for second and third at 65%. 

When questioned about how they would rate their own employer in terms of sustainability, only 13% of employees said very good while a further 24% said good.

That leaves 65% of employees who either don’t believe their employer is doing enough or are sitting on the fence. 

Christian Arno, Pawprint founder, said: “This survey highlights the growing need for workplaces to demonstrate their commitment to this too, especially if they are to attract and retain future generations of talent.”