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How To Invest in Quality Jobs Impact

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Stockholm (NordSIP) – With 61% of the global workforce informally employed, far too many workers experience job insecurity, poor safety standards, and subpar wages. “As a result, economies stagnate, wage gaps widen, and vulnerable countries further destabilise. Investors can address these inequities by investing into quality jobs, thereby promoting economic security, improving livelihoods, and creating stronger and more resilient individuals, families, and communities,” the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) argues in its latest Quality Jobs Report.

The report offers an analysis of social investments in quality jobs to help investors understand how to optimise their impact at each stage of the investment process to facilitate better impact results. It offers insights into impact performance and discusses how investors can use the GIIN’s COMPASS Methodology and IRIS+ to compare investments and impact performance.

The Sample

The GIIN surveyed 37 investor organisations, the vast majority of which were asset managers. They managed 107 investment funds, 486 unique investment and 867 annualised investments. The average investment amount outstanding across the sample was US$6.3 million, and the median was US$2.2 million.

Most investments were conducted via private debt (45%) and private equity (40%) markets in a cross-section of sectors, including food & agriculture (36%), non-microfinance financial services (20%), microfinance (15%). Impact investments from the sample focused on improving employment conditions for direct employees, particularly those living below national poverty lines (39%) and women (36%).

49% of investments in the sample seek to improve earnings and wealth through employment and entrepreneurship, particularly for disadvantaged and excluded groups. 33% seek to improve health and well-being across the workforce, and 30% seek to increase job security and stability for workers in precarious employment.

Performance Assessment

Investments covered by the sample reportedly supported an average of 867 jobs across all employee types at investee organisations. On average, investee companies employed 191 female employees.

Investments’ impact performance either met or exceeded investors’ expectations for 78% of investments and fell short for just 6% of investments. The impact investors surveyed noted that 70% of investments met or exceeded financial performance expectations while only 13% fell short.

“Quality jobs are essential to both an inclusive recovery from the covid crisis and a just transition. This research demonstrates to investors how high quality employment can be an important, measurable investment objective. Fundamentally, there is a tremendous opportunity for investors to drive capital into solutions that contribute to an inclusive and sustainable society that benefits all people,” Amit Bouri, CEO and Co-Founder of the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) tells NordSIP.

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