How HR Leaders Can Offer Climate-Safe Retirement Options

By Amy Gray, Stand.earth Climate Finance Associate Director

We recycle. We vote. We reduce our carbon footprint. But our retirement plans? Many are quietly investing in coal, oil, and gas. Climate risk is financial risk – and HR teams have the power to address it.

We know many people are navigating a heavy moment amid growing economic uncertainty, real fear about the future, and deep concern about what’s unfolding in the U.S. and globally. At a moment when environmental protections are being dismantled, and workers’ savings face rising climate-related financial risk, we have a critical opportunity to lead with clarity and foresight.

Retirement plans aren’t abstract financial products; they’re deferred wages, long-term security, and a reflection of how organizations care for their people in uncertain times. Retirement funds represent deferred wages and the long-term security workers rely on. When these savings are tied to coal, oil, and gas volatility, employees shoulder risks they never knowingly agreed to. And in a rapidly changing economy, those risks are intensifying. 

Many nonprofits are working to solve the climate crisis, but their retirement plans are still invested in fossil fuels. This exposes staff savings to long-term volatility, climate risk, and underperformance.

This important conversation underscored something important: HR teams and internal advocates have more power than they’re often told, and there are concrete, responsible steps that can be taken to reduce risk and protect workers’ futures.

Key takeaways from our speakers

• You don’t need to overhaul everything to begin small shifts.
• Offering climate-aligned options can fit squarely within fiduciary responsibility.
• Internal advocates and HR teams can work together to move things forward, even when there’s hesitation.

Most employees never see the full story behind their 401(k) or 403(b) plan. However, many workplace retirement portfolios remain heavily invested in fossil fuel companies, which are at the center of the climate catastrophe and some of the most volatile assets in today’s markets.

On the 10-, 15-, and 20-year time horizons, the fossil fuel sector has consistently had the worst performance of any sector of the economy. Over the same time periods, it’s been the most volatile sector of the economy. Fossil fuels are increasingly vulnerable to geopolitical and legal shocks, and are extremely risky long-term holdings for investors.

Your retirement fund is your future. It’s intended to be secure, stable, and responsibly managed. But if your hard-earned savings are tied to fossil fuels, you may be exposed to long-term financial risk you’ve never been told about. Together with our HR teams, we have the power to change this!

We’ll be hosting Action Hours for folks who want hands-on support navigating provider conversations, internal advocacy, or next steps. We’ll continue sharing tools, case studies, and examples through the Retire Big Oil and Climate-Safe Retirement Funds campaigns. This isn’t just for HR professionals – we encourage workers advocating for sustainable retirement options at their workplaces, and anyone seeking to align their workplace benefits with climate and social responsibility to join the movement for Climate-Safe Retirement Funds.