Haute Equipe employees vote for 100 percent sustainable pensions
26 June 2018
The employees of Haute Equipe, a consultancy for government and education, are opting to have their pension at BeFrank invested sustainably from now on. This is the outcome of a vote among the employees. Haute Equipe is one of the first companies in the Netherlands to make a conscious choice to invest via this ‘Sustainable Lifecycle’.
Haute Equipe’s current pension contract with BeFrank will expire soon. The online pension administrator consequently met with the company early this year. It quickly became clear that the collaboration with BeFrank would be continued. The company’s employees have so far accrued pension via the ‘Passive Lifecycle’. In this case the pension capital is invested in a mix of index funds. BeFrank offers participants the possibility to determine their investment risk with all the lifecycles. ‘They can also diverge from the standard lifecycle within the pension scheme and choose a different lifecycle,’ says Jan Hein Rhebergen, Commercial Director of BeFrank.
A green pension fund
One of those choices involves switching to a sustainable lifecycle. During the inventory round with BeFrank, the management team members and employees indicated they would like to go a step further: a 100 percent sustainable pension for everyone. ‘Green suits Haute Equipe,’ says Haute Equipe Managing Director Marion van Staveren. ‘The founding principle of our company is: “Laying the foundation for social results together”. The sustainability theme also features high on the agenda of all our clients and is consequently a top priority for us as well. The investment costs of this lifecycle are, however, slightly higher. This is why we chose to let our employees decide. A vote was held and our employees consciously chose the “Sustainable Lifecycle” with full conviction.’
Sustainability as the standard
This means all the pensions of Haute Equipe will be completely green in nature from next month. BeFrank invests members’ contributions exclusively in a mix of sustainable funds of Triodos Investment Management. This means the pension capital is only invested via this fund in companies that contribute to making our society more sustainable. Triodos Investment Management, the investment arm of Triodos Bank, adheres to stringent selection criteria for all its investments. This makes this lifecycle one of the most sustainable in the market.
Pensions closer to people
‘We think it’s great the employees have made this choice themselves,’ says Rhebergen. ‘We are a huge supporter of giving members insight and freedom of choice. It is, after all, their income for later, so they must have a say in the matter. Giving employees more choices also brings about greater engagement with the topic of pensions. This dovetails with our mission to bring pensions closer to people.’
About Haute Equipe
Haute Equipe Partners in Public is a leading consultancy for government and education. We focus on issues in the field of resources, information and process management, subsidies, revolving funds, general and administrative law and the social sector.
About BeFrank
BeFrank has been active in the group pension market since 2011 and is the first pension premium institution (PPI) in the Netherlands. BeFrank offers an online pension, straightforward communications and innovative services. It is part of NN Group.
For more information contact Isabelle van Ast. E-mail: pers@befrank.nl, Tel: +31 (0)20 5621118.