Sustainability Targets in Executive Remuneration Contracts and Corporate Sustainability Performance in the United Kingdom and European Union

Nguyen, Hien Thi Thuc; Ullah, Subhan; Le, Hanh Thi My; Hameed, Affan

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of the integration of sustainability criteria in executive remuneration on corporate sustainability performance (CSP). The paper tests the pooled OLS models on a cross-country sample comprising 279 firms from 19 European Union countries and the United Kingdom under the period from 2014 to 2018. The results suggest that there is a significant positive impact of sustainability-related executive remuneration on CSP. Furthermore, there is no significant statistical evidence for the moderating impact of the sustainability committee on the relationship between sustainability-related contracting and CSP. Moreover, the results reveal that the moderating effects of official CSR disclosure and external assurance for sustainability reports are significantly negative. We suggest that regulators and practitioners promote the integration of sustainability targets in executive remuneration to improve CSP and review the quality of sustainability reporting systems.

Citation

Nguyen, H. T. T., Ullah, S., Le, H. T. M., & Hameed, A. (2023). Sustainability Targets in Executive Remuneration Contracts and Corporate Sustainability Performance in the United Kingdom and European Union. Environment Systems and Decisions, 43, 393-415. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10669-023-09901-6

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 20, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Mar 14, 2023
• Publication Date: 2023-09
• Deposit Date: Mar 15, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 15, 2024
• Journal: Environment Systems and Decisions
• Print ISSN: 2194-5403
• Electronic ISSN: 2194-5411
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 43
• Pages: 393-415
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10669-023-09901-6
• Keywords: Sustainability-related executive remuneration; sustainability committee; sustainability report; external assurance; corporate sustainability performance
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/18523851
• Publisher URL: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10669-023-09901-6