Sarah Schwimmer, co-lead executive of B Lab, said: \u201cAs others step back, CEOs and other business leaders in our community are paving the way for good job practices that treat people fairly and respect their rights.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWith one million employees now part of this movement, we can prove another way of doing business is possible and start to imagine the impact for societal change when workers are empowered and respected.\u201d<\/p>\n
The study follows the Aspen Institute\u2019s Good Jobs Framework<\/a>, which defines a \u201cgood job\u201d by looking at three categories: economic stability; economic mobility; and equity, respect and voice.<\/p>\n The researchers compared data from 6,592 certified B Corps against information provided by a sample of \u201cordinary businesses\u201d \u2013 companies that have filled in B Lab\u2019s impact assessment tool but said they do not consider social or environmental factors when making decisions (the impact assessment tool can be used by any company to measure its impact).<\/p>\n With one million employees now part of this movement, we can prove another way of doing business is possible<\/p>\n While both ordinary businesses and B Corps in the sample paid at least 75% of their employees a living wage (just over 93% in both cases), B Corps surpassed their peers on workers\u2019 benefits, such as retirement plans where employers match their workers\u2019 own pension contributions (provided by 56% or B Corps, compared with 12% of ordinary businesses), a high-quality health insurance plan or life insurance.\u00a0<\/p>\n B Corps were also more likely to offer flexible schedules or part-time hours at the request of workers, and extended parental leave. Overall, researchers found B Corps were significantly more likely to have an employee satisfaction level of 90% or above.<\/p>\n In April, B Lab unveiled new standards to certify B Corps, which require companies to show their performance on seven impact topics, which include \u201cFair Work\u201d. The Fair Work section states that businesses should \u201cprovide good quality jobs and have positive workplace cultures, implement fair wage practices, and incorporate worker feedback in decision-making\u201d. The new standards are being rolled out gradually<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Future-proofing: training<\/p>\n The report highlights skills development as essential to workers today: data from the World Bank \u2013 cited in the B Lab study \u2013 estimates that more than 1bn jobs are likely to be transformed around the world in the next decade due to automation, climate change, the digitalisation of products and services, and a shrinking and aging workforce. Employees will need to learn new skills to adapt as the world of work changes.<\/p>\n Nearly all B Corps in the sample provide some sort of training at every level: 99% offer new hire training; 97% offer skill-based training; and 87% offer external professional development.<\/p>\n Over two-thirds of B Corps have a policy to encourage internal promotions, and 45% have seen more than 15% of their workers receive a promotion within the company.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n A range of practices<\/p>\n Actions taken by B Corps to support their workers take various forms. US-based Rhino Foods, which produces cookie dough for ice cream, had noticed that its workers, despite decent pay and stable jobs, often faced financial precarity. In response, the company now allows employees to access US$1,500 in advance of their wages \u2013 which they repay through payroll deductions. This, says Rhino Foods, helped its workers to become more financially stable and even start saving for the future. This led hundreds more businesses to adopt the practice, according to B Lab.<\/p>\n Dutch fashion accessory brand Secrid, says \u201cimpactful employment\u201d is part of its primary mission: it partners with employment centres for people with disabilities, offering them secure and meaningful jobs.<\/p>\n The researchers mapped B Corps and ordinary businesses against a \u201cJob Quality Index\u201d \u2013 where a point is allocated for each \u201cpositive job quality element\u201d provided by the company. The result shows that B Corps are more likely to perform well on this index \u2013 with a median figure of 8.5 out of 15; ordinary businesses tend to be spread at the lower end of the spectrum, with a median of 6.3.<\/p>\n The research concludes that \u201ca distinguishing feature of B Corps is not only outperformance on individual practices, but also implementing a greater number of practices altogether\u201d.<\/p>\n The researchers also found that the higher companies perform on the Job Quality Index, the higher their returns tend to be \u2013 although it was not possible to say whether one actually caused the other.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Top image: B Corp Secrid partners with employment centres for people with disabilities, offering them secure and meaningful jobs. Credit: Secrid\u00a0and BBC StoryWorks Commercial Productions.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n