Climate : ManpowerGroup announces validated science-based targets and commits to achieve net zero by 2045 or sooner.

ManpowerGroup leads in its industry to set climate action targets validated  by Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

As the COP26 concluded with a new agreement to tackle climate change, there has never been more urgency for business, government and consumers to accelerate climate action. Before the Glasgow conference, ManpowerGroup announced that the ‘Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) ⁽¹⁾, the leading authority driving corporate climate action, has validated its ambitious targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions and drive positive climate action. ManpowerGroup’s commitments are to reduce by 2030 operational emissions by 60% (Scope 1 & 2 – energy and electricity consumption in our buildings, company cars etc.) and supply chain emissions by 30%   (Scope 3 – waste management, travel, mobility, suppliers). These validated science-based targets are a key part of ManpowerGroup’s ambition to reach net zero by 2045 or sooner.

This commitment is the latest milestone in ManpowerGroup’s Climate Action Plan to measure and reduce full value-chain impact, as outlined in the 2021 ESG Report, Working to Change the World⁽²⁾. ManpowerGroup has long-been committed to transparency on climate, disclosing to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP⁽⁴⁾ for a decade and most recently moving towards aligning with the ‘Task Force of Climate-Related Financial Disclosures’⁽⁴⁾ guidelines. This Task Force was set up by the G20 Financial Stability Board to measure the financial impact of climate risks. ManpowerGroup is actively engaged in the World Economic Forum Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders and recently co-signed an OpenLetter pushing world leaders at COP26 to pursue ambitious public-private collaboration for climate action.

“Alongside People and Governance, Climate is one of the three pillars of ManpowerGroup’s new sustainability strategy, which we are also implementing in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg,” explains Philippe Lacroix, Managing Director of ManpowerGroup BeLux. “By joining this ambitious climate project, we will be able to rely on a rigorous methodology and act faster and more collectively to reduce our environmental impact. The validation of these targets by SBTi provides reassurance to our stakeholders – our employees, clients and candidates, our supply chain, our investors and the communities in which we operate – in our renewed commitment to People and Planet, and our progress towards ‘net zero emissions’. This is how we will accelerate job creation and demand for new skills, to reshape a more sustainable, resilient future with more opportunities for all.”

 The multi-disciplinary ‘Planet Team’ set up by ManpowerGroup BeLux will define science-based targets at national level (SBTi) in 2022 and establish a new climate roadmap. In parallel, the team will continue to implement the many projects already launched in this area, including the use of green energy, greening the car fleet, zero paper target, total control of recycling, actions related to mobility and the extension of the hybrid working model. These efforts for the climate allowed ManpowerGroup BeLux to obtain a score of 70% in the most recent audit, conducted in 2020 by EcoVadis, the reference platform for evaluating the sustainable development performance of suppliers. With this score, ManpowerGroup BeLux is in the top 6% of companies in its sector audited worldwide by EcoVadis in this field.

SBTi provides independent, scientifically-validated confirmation that ManpowerGroup’s emissions targets are consistent with reductions required to limit warming to 1.5°C, making a critical contribution to combat the effects of climate change with over 1,000 of the world’s leading organizations.  Of the more than 4,200 companies in the G20 that have set climate targets, only 20% are science-based.

(1) Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) – aims to drive “ambitious climate action” in the business world, making its targets a means for companies to turn the transition to a low-carbon economy into a competitive advantage. The main idea is to align greenhouse gas reduction targets with climate science. Setting a science-based target involves four steps for companies: signing a letter of commitment that confirms that the company will work towards a science-based greenhouse gas reduction target, developing an SBT within 24 months, submitting the target for validation, announcing the target sciencebasedtargets.org

(2) ManpowerGroup Report – ESG 2021 (Environment, Social, Governance) – Working to Change the World 

(3) CDP is a not-for-profit charity that runs the global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regionsto manage their environmental impacts. Over the past 20 years we have created a system that has resulted in unparalleled engagement on environmental issues worldwide cdp.net

(4) ‘Task Force of Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)’ was created in 2015 by the The Financial Stability Board of the G20 in order to improve and increase reporting of climate-related financial information. fsb-tcfd.org/

(5) The Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, under the banner of the World Economic Forum, published an open letter co-signed by more than 90 CEOs of multinational companies in the run-up to COP26 with a list of concrete solutions to combat climate change. www.weforum.org/projects/alliance-of-ceo-climate-leaders  

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/10/cop26-ceo-climate-alliance-message-to-world-leaders/