With unemployment figures near a 30 year low, employees are in a strong position to be picky about whom they work for and amidst this tight labour market, organisations that demonstrate a commitment to sustainability are fast becoming the employers of choice.

The  2007 ‘Feed Your Mind,’ report published by Seek, found that 69% of job seeking respondents in their employee satisfaction and motivation survey labelled corporate responsibility as an important factor when deciding which company they wanted to work for. In addition 15% said they would only work for a company that had a CSR program.

“They are demanding this and the market is such that they can demand it,” says Romily Madew, Chief Executive of the Green Building Council of Australia, referring to the growing demand from both employees and tenants for companies’ to become more sustainable through use and construction of green buildings.  In the US, ‘Care2,’ the largest online progressive community network, published results from a recent survey, with 48% of employees saying they were willing to work for less pay if given the opportunity to work for a socially responsible company. They also found that 73% of workers said it was “very important” to work for a socially responsible company and 35% reported having left a company because they believed it wasn’t socially responsible.

In an article on sustainability and employee recruitment in the Wall street Journal, Sarah Quaterman, Head of Merrill Lynch & Co’s campus recruiting says that 10 years ago no one asked about their green credentials, but today Merril’s environmental efforts are detailed on the back of every campus recruitment brochure produced. “Students are looking to work for companies that care about the environment... they are almost expecting greenness like they expect work-life balance, ethnic diversity and globalisation,” says Lindsay Pollack, the author of 'Getting From College to Career.'

The statistics are compelling; sustainability performance is proving to be an important consideration amongst job seekers. With current low unemployment figures, companies that are considered socially and environmentally responsible are realising the benefits of their actions when it comes to attracting and retaining the best employees. 

Below are findings from the 2007 MonsterTRAK survey of over 4,700 job seekers:

• 80% of students are interested in a job that positively impacts the environment
• 92% of students are more inclined to work for a company that is environmentally friendly
• 32% of students are currently looking for an environmentally friendly job

References

• Mattioli, D. 'How Going Green Draws Talent, Cuts Costs,' The Wall Street Journal
• 'Socially Responsible Companies Rank High With Job seekers,' http://www.sunshinebydesign.com
• 'Green buildings boost business: expert,' The Age, May 27, 2008
• http://www.monstertrak.monster.com/greencareers