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For more information contact:
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| Michael Passoff |
| As You Sow Foundation |
| San Francisco, CA 94104 |
| Phone: (415) 391-3212, extension 32 |
| email: |
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| Conrad MacKerron |
| As You Sow Foundation |
| San Francisco, CA 94104 |
| Phone: (415) 391-3212, extension 31 |
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ExxonMobil
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ISSUE SUMMARY
HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT – PROXY ITEM # 12
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In 2002, a shareholder resolution asked ExxonMobil to adopt a "human rights policy which shall include an explicit commitment to support and uphold the principles and values contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights." At the company's Annual Meeting of Shareholders in Dallas on May 29, 2002, approximately 374 million shares representing over $15 billion in shareholder equity were voted in favor.
The resolution filed in 2003 has been revised to ask the company to "review its policies related to human rights and its plan to implement that policy" to acknowledge that, while ExxonMobil contends that its policies address human rights, the company has not yet developed a policy or implementation plan that is sufficiently comprehensive, transparent and verifiable, or explicit in supporting and upholding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other minimum standards.
The 2003 resolution co-filers, which includes the NY State Police and Fireman Pension Funds, AFL-CIO, Amnesty International and nearly a dozen religious and socially responsible institutional investors, point out critical flaws in the company’s current policy that 1) it lacks any independent monitoring or verification that policy is being implemented, and 2) it lags far behind industry leaders including its top competitors.
ExxonMobil’s current policy has clearly proven to be insufficient in protecting the company from legal liabilities, production stoppages and headline and reputational risks particularly from ExxonMobil operations in Indonesia and Chad-Cameroon.
The resolution proponents believe that management needs to consider new policies in keeping with industry standards, and that a monitored and enforced policy is prudent and inexpensive insurance against financial, legal and reputational risks.
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