FairPensions launches "ask your pension fund about ethics" web facility

FairPensions today unveiled an online facility which will allow users to ask their pension fund to challenge corporate abuse.

UK pension funds own approximately a fifth of the stock market, making them powerful enough to affect company behaviour on human rights, environmental and labour issues. At present, many pension funds never tackle companies in their portfolio about such issues, and very few ever report on their actions to their members. This facility gives pension fund members a chance to find out how their own money is being used and take action to improve it.

Alex van der Velden, executive director of FairPensions said "Pension funds already take action to affect company policies on issues like governance or executive pay. It is important that they also challenge companies on the things their members really care about, as well as recognising that many ethical issues harm company profits - and therefore investment earnings - in the long term".

To email your pension fund click here