Microsoft shareholders approve report on sexual harassment

On Tuesday, Microsoft said its shareholders approved a proposal by Arjuna Capital, which sought a report from the software firm on the effectiveness of its policies to fight sexual harassment in the workplace.

In a filing, Microsoft said that 80 per cent of the votes cast at the company's annual meeting were in favor of producing a report.

Arjuna Capital is a Boston-based investment adviser and frequent filer of shareholder resolutions that want companies to disclose more data on pay equity.

Microsoft already shares annual data about the volume of sexual harassment concerns raised and the results of the investigations into them. Plans to make that data public have been adopted by the government.

The vote comes as big mutual fund firms increasingly support investor challenges to companies on environmental, social and governance ESG issues and as employees of tech firms stage walk outs protesting their tackling of sexual harassment claims.

Automaker Tesla Inc. said support for shareholder resolution on how it handles workplace complaints of harassment and discrimination increased to 46 per cent of votes cast at its annual meeting, up from 27 per cent for a similar proposal in 2020.