The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has written to the chairs of each FTSE350 company requesting that they share information with investors about their culture and working practices.

In a letter, supported by the Pensions Minister, Richard Harrington MP, Newton Investment Management and USS Investment Management Limited, the PLSA outlines the benefit of engagement and the effect it can have on a company's performance over the long-term.

Previous research cited by the PLSA has highlighted the limited detail that UK companies currently provide about their workforce. Fewer than half of FTSE 100 companies detail their level of staff turnover in their annual report, while only 11 per cent break down their total staff by full-time, part-time or temporary employment status.

The PLSA published it toolkit, Understanding the Worth of the Workforce, this year which outlines the type of information about workforce-related issues that pension fund investors should request from the companies in which they invest. The toolkit identifies the key performance metrics of composition, stability, capacity and engagement levels of its workforce; and recommends ways in which investors can encourage better reporting through private engagement and voting at company AGMs.

Pensions Minister, Richard Harrington MP, commented: “The status of a firm’s workforce can be a key issue for investors. So a toolkit that helps businesses give important investors such as pension schemes the data they need about their workforce is a good thing and I welcome this positive step by the PLSA.”

Share Story: