THE HOME DEPOT, INC. | Living Wage Disclosure at THE HOME DEPOT, INC.

Status
Withdrawn
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Resolution details
Company ticker
HD
Lead filer
Zevin Asset Management
Resolution ask
Report on or disclose
ESG theme
  • Social
ESG sub-theme
  • Decent work
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Consumer Discretionary
Company HQ country
United States
Resolved clause
Resolved: Shareholders request The Home Depot Corporation (the “Company”) Board of Directors to oversee the preparation of a living wage report to provide investors with information needed to assess the extent to which the Company is complying with international human rights standards and assessing systemic risks stemming from growing income inequality. The Report should be updated and published annually and include:
· Number of Home Depot workers paid less than a living wage, broken down by full-time employees, part- time employees, and contingent workers;
· By how much aggregate compensation paid to workers in each category falls short of the aggregate amount they would be paid if they received a living wage; and
· The living wage benchmark/methodology used for these disclosures.
Supporting statement
Supporting Statement
Income inequality slows US economic growth by reducing demand by 2 to 4 percent.1 High levels of income inequality threaten investors’ diversified portfolios by slowing economic growth, limiting upward mobility, and exacerbating political polarization.2
A living wage is a level of compensation that is “sufficient to afford a decent standard of living for the worker and her or his family” in their location, including “food, water, housing, education, health care, transportation, clothing, and other essential needs including provision for unexpected events.”3 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes that “[e]veryone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity.”4
Home Depot conducts an annual analysis of pay and compensation practices for US associates and raised its wages to $15 per hour across its operations in the US.5 However, Home Depot does not disclose the gaps between prevailing and living wages across operations.
Shareholders are unable to assess the Company’s contribution to systemic risks created by income inequality, which are linked to depressed wages and compliance with international human rights norms. Data shows that in many regions where The Home Depot operates the cost of living exceeds the income required to cover the costs of basic needs.6
Additionally, Home Depot hires contingent workers through staffing or vendor contracts, including part-time temporary workers, independent contractors, consultants, contract employees, and seasonal hires. Currently investors lack visibility into Home Depot’s wage practices in this segment of its workforce, posing blind spots to decision-useful information.
Collectively closing the living wage gap worldwide could generate as much as an additional $4.56 trillion every year through increased productivity and spending,7 equivalent to a more than 4 percent increase in annual GDP.
Inadequate pay thus materially reduces the intrinsic value of the global economy, which in turn affects investment portfolios.
As one of the country’s largest employers, Home Depot would benefit from a living wage gap exercise to help with its long-term human capital management strategy. This Proposal does not require Home Depot to use a particular living wage calculator or methodology.
1 https://www.epi.org/publication/secular-stagnation 
2 https://tiiproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/TIIP-Stewardship-Final.pdf , at 2. 
3 https://www.globallivingwage.org/about/what-is-a-living-wage/ 
4 https://www.ohchr.org/en/human-rights/universal-declaration/translations/english , Article 23. 
5 https://corporate.homedepot.com/sites/default/files/202307/2023%20Home%20Depot%20ESG%20Report_vF.4_7.25.23%20%28compressed%29.pdf 
6 https://livingwage.mit.edu/
7 https://tacklinginequality.org/files/introduction.pdf 

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