What do CSRD and ESRS mean?
Many listed companies, banks and insurance companies are already obliged to publish a report on non-financial matters. The EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will require all companies with more than 10 employees to report from 2026.
The European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS)have established themselves as a framework, which contain general standards as well as topic-specific standards on the environment, social issues and corporate governance. It is therefore about much more than just environmental sustainability.
For HR managers, the ESRS S1 "Own Workforce" standard is of course central.
Standard ESRS S1 "Own Workforce"
Organizations must disclose information on working conditions, fundamental employee rights and equality. Specifically, the following topics are covered:
Working conditions, including:
- Training and development
- Health and safety
- working hours
- Work-life balance
- Appropriate remuneration (see example on the right)
- Social security
Access to equal opportunities, including:
- Discrimination on the grounds of gender, racial or ethnic origin, nationality, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation
- Equal pay
- Access to secure jobs
- Equal treatment with regard to working conditions, access to social protection and training
- Inclusion of people with disabilities
Other employment-related rights, including rights relating to
- Freedom of association and collective bargaining
- Social dialog
With Great Place To Work to ESRS S1 Compliance
The topics of the ESRS S1 "Own Workforce" standard correspond to a good workplace culture as defined by Great Place To Work. With 30 years of research in this field, we are the global authority on workplace culture. Our Trust Index© employee survey directly covers the topics required by ESRS.
Instead of just documenting the topics superficially, you can also quantify and prove ESRS S1 compliance: Independent certification by Great Place To Work confirms the effectiveness of your measures!
Certification in the sustainability report
The real estate company PSP Swiss Property and the fintech company Leonteq are already actively using the Great Place To Work certification in their sustainability reports. In doing so, they demonstrate to the public that, as good employers, sustainability is also a very important issue for their own employees. Leonteq has even set itself a Trust Index© score of 72% as an explicit ESG target by 2026.
«The employee survey and certification as a Great Place To Work are both internal and external confirmation of our efforts in the area of social sustainability.»
- Giacomo Balzarini, Chief Executive Officer, PSP Swiss Property AG
Download the PSP Swiss Property case study (PDF)
Take the first step towards ESRS S1 compliance
- Start with certification by Great Place To Work to credibly demonstrate your ESRS S1 compliance.
- Communicate internally and externally that sustainability is important to you.
- Use the results of the employee survey to further improve your workplace culture.
