Sustainability in the Workplace
Society is now becoming more and more aware of the devastating impact humanity has been having on the Earth. There is an increasing awareness of the importance of changing our lifestyles to become more sustainable and trying to reduce the damage we are causing to the world around us.
Simply defined, sustainability means - to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. There are three pillars to sustainability; economic, environmental and social. It seems to be becoming a vital part of business to engage with a sustainability strategy. We believe that having this strategy in place and visibly active will give your Employer Brand an edge, making you a more appealing place of work for potential candidates.
Millennials are currently the largest generation in society. Studies show that millennials are much more likely to say that they are adjusting their lifestyle to become more sustainable than previous generations. Generation Z is to become the next dominant generation, and they are equally - if not more - concerned about the environmental crisis. With more and more people making the effort to focus their lives around sustainability, many are seeking this within employment and would factor that greatly into their decision making when looking for a new role.
Pride in the Workplace
The majority of people care somewhat about how they are perceived by others and what they are associated with. A company’s reputation is important to potential employees; nobody wants to work for a company that is thought badly of - in fact, many would leave a position if an opening became available in a better-reputed company.
One way to elicit employee pride is through ensuring sustainable practices in the day to day operations of the company. This bears more value to an employee now than ever before as sustainable living becomes more and more of a focus within society. Job seekers may well prefer a sustainable company over one that has not put these practices in place as it will give them a sense of pride and satisfaction in the role.
Shared Values
For many, when seeking a new role, a big factor in their decision will be the company’s values. Most people will want to work for a company whose values they know align with their own. As mentioned previously, sustainability seems to bear much more importance to Millennials than any generation before them. With Millennials set to make up the biggest portion of the workforce, it is becoming increasingly important for employers to take on this social responsibility.
Ensuring shared values between a company and its employees will be beneficial to the employer also. Many companies that are working at the top of their market place great importance on cultural principles and beliefs when hiring. Shared values go toward growing a successful business.
Treating Employees Well
For a company to claim to be truly sustainable, this means that they must be practising social sustainability; i.e. managing the impact their business has on people - this includes their own employees. In contrast, if a company carries out no sustainability strategies at all, it could be assumed that they won’t value their workers in the same way either.