The JUST Report

Amidst all the backlash on ESG and DEI, it’s been interesting to track what’s actually going on behind the scenes at the corporations we track – and why.

As of March 29, 2024, our flagship index – the JUST U.S. Large Cap Diversified Index (JULCD)  – has outperformed the Russell 1000 (Cap-Weighted) benchmark by 0.346% year-to-date and by 10.7% since inception.

Monday is the 54th annual Earth Day, so in honor of that I thought we’d highlight a few companies that are showing extraordinary leadership on environmental matters. 

Fortune published their 2024 100 Best Places to Work list recently. It’s highly regarded by major employers and obviously reflects a theme we know to be a top priority for the public, so we thought it’d be fun to compare and contrast against our own JUST Jobs Scorecard, which we released last week. 

Investing in human capital is one of the essential elements of business leadership today. But without a comprehensive set of metrics and a clear definition of what good actually looks like, it’s very difficult to know where to invest in order to improve.

Helping workers prepare for their financial futures is a major JUST issue. And it’s not only a problem for older working Americans. Indeed many Gen X and Millennial adults in the workforce today worry about the costs associated with both caring for their parents as well as their children. 

In the early 2000s, I was fortunate enough to be involved in some of the initial groundbreaking work that brought climate risks forward to the global investor community as a matter of significant financial relevance. This feels similar, but even more urgent.

With the price of everything from gas to food remaining stubbornly high – February’s Consumer Price Index numbers released earlier this week showed inflation actually speeding up slightly – workers struggling to make ends meet seem set for further economic pain. 

The business case for investing in workers is surely watertight at this point. Let’s discuss some of the companies showing why:

With the pushback on ESG and ‘woke’ companies now maturing, there is room in America today for a more objective, data-driven framework that supports values-led business leadership.

With the rapid growth and deployment of generative AI, the consumer component of our stakeholder model – particularly in areas like data privacy, product benefit and harm, and customer treatment – is only going to grow in importance in the future. Here’s why.

Can corporate justness can align with local and state social, economic, environmental and political goals? 

“One of the sayings we have at the company is ‘you have to win the right way.'”

With confidence in the economy still feeling elusive for many people and layoffs dominating the headlines – particularly in the tech and banking sectors – it was a nice surprise to see prominent workforce investments by multiple large employers this week. 

“Rebuilding Trust” is the official theme of this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos. Trust in what?

“If the business community isn’t out there telling the real story — the American story — of opportunity and progress in this country, then no one should be surprised when people believe it’s as bad as the headlines and the political ads say it is.”

On January 1st we launched a major media campaign with Empower Media to elevate JUST’s brand and celebrate the leadership of top-performing companies.

Capitalism, it seems to me, is undergoing a transformation, not unlike Charles Dickens’s famed Christmas creation, Ebenezer Scrooge. The question is whether its future will be different from its present and its past.

How does the world address climate change while safeguarding economies, acknowledging disparities, protecting worker well-being and jobs, meeting consumer needs, and supporting communities?

This week, the Supreme Court heard arguments in a challenge to the bankruptcy deal meant to compensate victims of the highly addictive painkiller OxyContin and shield Purdue Pharma’s owners, the Sackler family, from liability.

Between forces motivated to ensure AI benefits society, and those who view AI through a purely commercial lens.

What makes a good job? It’s a question that’s driving many conversations today – from picket lines with auto employees and Starbucks baristas to C-suites and boardrooms across the country.

How can corporate America better serve those who’ve served our country? It’s an important question to highlight on Veterans Day. In fact, it’s one that helps guide our work here at JUST Capital year round. 

Two moments this week reminded me why JUST’s mission matters so much to the bigger macroeconomic situation we find ourselves in.  

Are you happy? It may seem like an odd question in times like these. But according to Mo Gawdat, former Chief Business Officer at Google X, and renowned happiness expert, it’s a question more and more employers should be asking of their people.