Sustainability as a job factor: importance for applicants, employees and companies

Sustainability is now a very popular term. Environmentally conscious behaviour and management, social sustainability and social responsibility as well as ethical business practices are no longer just empty phrases, but essential factors that significantly influence the attractiveness of a company or a job profile. Nowadays, people consciously decide in favour of companies based on their sustainability performance and ambitions or the future viability of their business model. Or against them, quit and look for new job offers. This brings us to the phenomenon that sustainability is a job factor!

In this blog post, we look at how sustainability influences the perception of a company in the eyes of potential applicants and existing employees. We also look at how corporate sustainability affects the behaviour of applicants or the ambition to resign. We conclusively show that it is worthwhile for companies to become active in terms of employee satisfaction and their own corporate attractiveness in terms of sustainability and climate protection.

Table of contents

We will continue in another article. We will then look at the question of how sustainability can be communicated. We provide some practical examples for targeted communication.

Sustainability determines life decisions

Sustainability is a decision criterion. This trend is clearly evident in many everyday actions. Consumers are specifically looking for regional and fair trade products in the supermarket. They consciously opt for rail travel instead of air travel for their holidays or choose their banks and investments according to ethical or sustainable criteria.

The importance of sustainability does not end with consumer behaviour. This aspect is also playing an increasingly important role when it comes to choosing a job and deciding on an educational path. The growing interest in so-called green jobs or in study programmes such as sustainability management, business ethics, CSR and responsible management is a clear sign that the next generation of workers attaches importance to sustainable principles.

Rainbow-washing follows the same procedure as greenwashing. Statements or flags in front of the head office about the company's LGBTQI+ friendliness. It is misleading if there is no serious commitment to the issues. / unslash.com, M. Strauß

Companies present and emphasise sustainability

Almost every company presents some aspect of "sustainability" on its website. Many state this as a corporate value or use bold headlines such as "We act sustainably!". Obviously, it is important to present sustainability. However, this text does not analyse the substance of these claims in detail. What is clear, however, is this: While some companies actually show significant progress in their sustainability performance and ESG ambitions, others use the term more as a PR measure or marketing tool without implementing significant changes in their corporate practices. This leads to a discrepancy between claim and reality. This is called green washing. If it is not a matter of ecological "washing", it is also referred to as bluewashing, rainbowwashing or whitewashing. This is increasingly being scrutinised and viewed very critically by customers, stakeholders and potential applicants.

Studies and analyses: Sustainability influences perception of the company and job satisfaction!

An extensive Survey of the Stepstone job portalin which 12,000 people took part, underlines this trend. Over three quarters of respondents rated sustainability in their job as (somewhat) important.

More than a third of respondents stated that they would be prepared to quit their job if their company was involved in environmentally damaging projects. This shows that employees are not just passive observers, but actively seek out companies that share and implement their values.

In addition, every second respondent sees a potential risk to their own job satisfaction if the company pursues unsustainable activities.

Interestingly, two thirds of respondents are in favour of measures that promote sustainability, even if these are associated with personal restrictions, such as the use of rail travel instead of faster flight connections or the limitation of free printing quotas in the office.

Almost half of the participants would specifically look for companies that are characterised by sustainability when changing jobs. One in three is even prepared to accept a lower salary for a job in a sustainable company.

The 2019 survey focussed on ecological sustainability, i.e. commitment to environmental and climate issues.
Update 2025: The latest survey by Stepstone confirms the trends and figuresif these were queried again.

Environmentally orientated sustainability as a job factor

Similar results can be seen in the more recent findings of the Study "Climate as a job factor II" of the Königstein Group from 2020 and 2022. 1,000 participants were included in the comparative study. This also relates to a topic from the environmental dimension. The survey focuses on climate, climate protection and corporate commitment to climate-friendly business practices. The social or governance dimensions of sustainability are not specifically analysed here.

According to this study, for more than half of those surveyed, a strong attitude towards climate protection is one of the top 3 incentives when looking for an employer. This puts a company's environmental awareness on a par with traditional factors such as salary and work-life balance.

Another important result of the study is that 59 % of all respondents would like companies to take a stand on sustainability issues more often in their communications. This emphasises the desire for more transparency and commitment to sustainability at company level.

The younger generation (18-29 years old) in particular shows a critical attitude towards companies' sustainability promises. This increase in scepticism suggests that younger workers in particular are especially sensitised to statements and services relating to sustainability. Companies must therefore not only be convincing in their communication, but also in their actual actions in order to appeal to this critical and value-orientated target group.

Young talent: For 18 %, sustainability is a top priority in the job search

It should be emphasised that for 11 % of the participants, environmental awareness is actually the main criterion when looking for a job. This trend extends across all generations and is by no means limited to young people. This means that without a pronounced environmental awareness and serious commitment, companies will no longer be able to reach this part of the labour market and thus close off access to this pool of workers.

In addition, the European Investment Bank climate survey (EIB) was cited. Around 2,000 people from Germany took part in this programme in 2022. This confirms the trend described above. A large majority of 81 % of the youngest generation (age group 20 to 29 years) state that a company's attitude to the climate is a decisive criterion when choosing a job.

More than half of the participants across all age groups share this view.

Companies can therefore score points with every second person who applies with ecological sustainability. 

Among 20- to 29-year-olds, sustainability is even the top priority for 18 % when looking for a job - in other words, around a fifth of each cohort!

To illustrate: In a full graduating class of 30 people, an average of 5 to 6 graduates will specifically look for companies and jobs with a strong sustainability profile where climate protection, for example, plays a major role. Conversely, this means that companies that are not well positioned in terms of environmental commitment and climate protection will have difficulties attracting these environmentally aware and committed young talents. They will simply no longer be able to attract some of the potential young talent and will not receive any applications.

Update 2025: Desire and demand for sustainability remains stable

The Sustainability check from Kununu from 2024 with 1,200 respondents also shows a stable picture. This contradicts the assumption that sustainability could become less relevant in view of economic uncertainties or due to numerous other global and political/social events. The survey shows that around two thirds continue to consider environmental protection important when choosing a job. Almost a quarter (24%) state that sustainability is the most important job criterion when deciding on a new position. This is an increase compared to previous surveys.

Update II: Recruiting managers cite sustainability as an advantage on the labour market

In a further Stepstone survey with a focus on recruiting managers sustainability is cited as an advantage. Applicants and employees ask about it. Sustainability increases the brand perception and loyalty of the company, loyalty increases and financial benefits are also identified by HRM managers. An inadequate focus on sustainability, on the other hand, is a reason to leave. Employees leave the company and "strive for a career with a higher purpose".

Interim conclusion: studies show that sustainability is a job factor

The trend is clear and has been summarised here. In the form of environmental orientation, sustainability is a job factor and has an impact on the perception of companies. We were able to showenvironmentally oriented sustainability pays off in terms of attractiveness. a new position and is Motivation for the work for the existing staff. What's more: Non-sustainable behaviour has a negative impact on work motivation or can use the Desire for a job change strengthen. What is more across all generations:

Sustainability is a job factor. Sustainability is a decision criterion for applying for or staying in a job.

We now have an initial overview. We have been able to present some of the results of various studies from the last few years in highlight form. For those interested and those responsible, it is definitely worth going into the figures of the linked surveys and studies in more detail. We have based this article on the following studies:

A look at the labour market: voting with your feet

So much for the figures from studies. But is such behaviour also evident on the labour market and not just in the questionnaire? The short answer is: Yes!

This is shown by a Analysis by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB). It analyses how sustainability influences the attractiveness of training positions.

The IAB work shows that Jobs with a sustainable profile attract a higher number of applicants and are therefore easier to fill can. There has been an increase in the number of apprenticeship starts: "This shows that the comparatively high attractiveness of training occupations with green skills and the increased demand for skilled workers in this area has led to an increase in the actual number of new training contracts. The increase compared to 2013 was around 14 per cent in 2021." The IAB report continues: "Our analysis shows that despite a declining number of applicants over the last ten years, the number of newly filled training places for occupations with environmentally or climate-friendly activities has increased."

Jobs that require so-called "green skills" are therefore particularly attractive. Jobs with a "green skill" profile are described as environmentally and climate-friendly. This could be, for example, a job installing solar or wind power plants or a sales representative for fair and ecological products. Compared to neutral jobs, which do not have a distinct profile with regard to environmental and climate issues, they are much more in demand. Green skill jobs also stand in stark contrast to "brown skill" jobs. These are occupations that are perceived as harmful to the environment or climate change. Examples include training in lignite mining or product management in the fast fashion sector. 

Sustainable orientation of training content and job profiles recommended

The authors of the IAB study provide information on how companies can respond to this development. One recommendation is to integrate environmentally friendly content into training and work practice. For example, content on environmental and climate issues can be explicitly integrated into the training plan so that they are discussed at every training station and thus become part of the apprenticeship or trainee programme.

This also creates the conditions for a transformation towards an economy that is in harmony with climate protection, resource conservation and circularity.

As occupational fields and business models develop in the direction of sustainable business, they not only become more environmentally friendly, but also more future-proof. This offers trainees and employees a more long-term perspective. This in turn contributes to the organisations and companies being perceived as more attractive employers because they are more secure.

Reason for cancellation Climate

Young people are leaving their companies to use their working hours for climate and environmentally friendly jobs. In the picture: A person leaves the office with his job-related items after giving notice.
 #ClimateQuitting - (young) people leave their job to switch to an environmentally or climate-friendly company. / Image KI DALL-E 2023

 A trend that is becoming increasingly apparent is gaining attention under the hashtag #ClimateQuitting. This completes the picture of the previously discussed points. This is about the decision to leave the workplace due to poor climate performance. It is a further sign that sustainable behaviour is not only a personal conviction for many people, but also a decisive factor when choosing a job.

Young people in particular, but not exclusively, who have recognised the urgency of climate, biodiversity and resource crises, are driving this trend. They are concerned with how they want to spend their working lives, which after all characterise half of our lives. The ClimateQuitters' answer to this question is: actively fighting environmental and climate crises.

Climate quitting has many faces

There are many examples of this: from graduates who reject a conventional apprenticeship after leaving school and instead take a crash course and go straight into the assembly of photovoltaic systems, to highly qualified specialists who leave top-paid positions in fossil fuel companies to work on their own start-ups for a sustainable economy of the future. There are also talented people who resign from companies with greenwashing practices to work for truly sustainable businesses. These people are consciously withdrawing their labour from yesterday's business models in order to help shape the economy of tomorrow.

A selection of case studies and further information on the #ClimateQuitting phenomenon is linked here:

Sustainability in the job is not a moral issue, but safety and future-driven

It is important to emphasise that it is by no means just a question of moralising about what are good and bad jobs. It should also be noted that there is a strong motive for long-term job security here. This is not a given if a company engages in business practices that are harmful to the climate and the environment and therefore does not provide a business model for the society and economy of the future, which will be based on a circular economy and the protection of the climate, biodiversity and resources.

The trend of climate quitting shows that people are prepared to break new ground, take risks, learn new things and stand up for their convictions with a high level of motivation, commitment and passion.
The alignment of values between people and companies is crucial. It is the task of a company to position itself clearly and strategically in this respect and to communicate accordingly.

Conclusion: Sustainability is a job factor! Those who close themselves off to the topic of sustainability are closing themselves off to part of the labour market

Sustainability as a job factor: Various studies and surveys have highlighted the relevance of sustainability for employees and applicants. Statements from HR managers and a look at the labour market confirm this. We have shown how this contributes to the attractiveness of jobs and companies. This awareness of sustainability is evident across generations.

To summarise, we can highlight three important findings:

  • More than half of people perceive the environmental sustainability of companies as positive.
  • For around a quarter, it is already the top decision criterion when choosing a job.
  • Sustainability has an influence on satisfaction, perception as an employer brand and the desire to change jobs. Non-sustainable behaviour or corporate involvement in environmentally harmful activities have a negative impact.

It is important to note that this article focuses primarily on environmental and climate issues as one aspect of sustainability. The dimensions of social sustainability, including topics such as work-life balance, diversity, workplace conditions, etc. and the dimension of governance and sustainable corporate management were not examined.

Our conclusion: Companies that do not endeavour to be sustainable or neglect to communicate this are closing themselves off to a significant proportion of potential applicants. You risk disadvantages in terms of motivation and length of stay with the current workforce.

Further contributions

In this article, we have just highlighted the relevance of sustainability for applicants, employees and companies. We discussed how you can present yourself in terms of sustainability in the following blog post on sustainability in recruitment and successful sustainability communication with employees.
How to Employees motivated for sustainabilitywe have created a Book contribution with a practice partner. An excerpt worth reading can be viewed here.
If you think bigger and the If you want to understand and change your company's culture with regard to sustainability, we recommend this blog post.

Transparency notice:

The Large Language Model GPT-4 was used to support the creation of this text.

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