We want to transparently share our progress in addressing social risks and driving positive change. Today we have launched our 2020 Social Report to update you on the Social element of our sustainable business approach.

Our Head of Sustainability Strategy & Reporting, Stephanie Leggett, comments:
'The global pandemic has negatively impacted progress towards the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, with many existing social inequalities being highlighted and compounded. As a global employer and investor we know that we can make a positive difference and are focused on playing our part in reversing this trend.'

It starts with us - our operational Social progress
In our operations, we focus on promoting fair and secure work, and improving workforce diversity. Our achievements in 2020 included:
  • We became one of the first two companies accredited as a Living Hours employer and working with the Living Wage Foundation, we took our fair and secure work commitments further across our operations, supply chain and investments.
  • We set new gender and ethnicity targets, and our continual progress on diversity and inclusion was recognised by the prestigious Bloomberg Gender Equality Index who included us for the third consecutive year.
  • To prioritise a fair COVID-19 recovery, we signed the C-19 Business Pledge, and provided over £440,000 of funding to support recovery efforts.


Integrating 'S' into our investments activity
Our responsible investment team and the ASI Research Institute analyse global and thematic social risks and opportunities. These teams work with asset class ESG experts, to integrate this research into investment decision making. The social factors considered are diverse and include labour and human rights issues such as diversity and inclusion, social welfare, modern slavery, indigenous rights and more.

Through our investments we engage with companies on human rights issues and use our expertise to support cross-industry anti-modern slavery collaborations. More information on this can be found in our recent Q1 ESG Report.

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Standard Life Aberdeen plc published this content on 31 May 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 31 May 2021 14:15:00 UTC.