Your pension, your voice: What it means to be a shareholder

Did you know that your pension makes you a shareholder in companies around the world? 

UK pension funds hold around £2 trillion in assets, and pensions are often one of the largest financial assets people own in the UK. That money belongs to millions of savers and is invested in companies around the world - from household names in technology and retail to global energy and financial firms. As a shareholder, you have a voice in how most of these companies are run. And your voice is important for long-term value creation in these companies. 

Companies that prioritise stakeholder engagement also perform better in the long term. One study found that when shareholders successfully engage with a company on environmental or social issues, it reduces the chance of that company losing value. This in turn protects the investments your pension depends on. 

Your money is at work in the world

When you have money in a pension, it doesn't just sit still. It's pooled with other savers' contributions and invested in shares, bonds, and other assets. That means your retirement savings are at work right now, funding the day-to-day operations of real businesses. That’s companies that employ people, manufacture products, and make decisions that affect communities and the environment.

Because your pension holds shares in these companies, you have an ownership stake in them. It may be small, but collectively, pensions can have a huge power in influencing how businesses are run.

Shareholders have a voice

Being a shareholder comes with certain rights. One of the most important is the right to vote on key decisions at a company's Annual General Meeting (AGM).

AGMs happen once a year. They're the formal setting where shareholders can vote on matters such as executive pay, the appointment of directors, and increasingly, proposals related to environmental and social issues. These are called shareholder resolutions.

If you've ever heard about investors pushing a company to set climate targets or improve working conditions, this is often how it happens. Shareholders submit or support resolutions, and then they vote.

A recent example shows how this works in practice. At Next's 2025 AGM, a coalition of investors filed a resolution asking the retailer to disclose how many of its staff are paid below the real Living Wage. Even without being legally required to act, Next committed to expanding its disclosure on pay in its next annual report.

The gap between savers and their voice

Most pension savers don't vote directly. Their pension provider, or the fund manager looking after the money, votes on their behalf. 

In practice, this could mean that tens of thousands of votes are cast every year on behalf of pension savers without them being consulted. Most savers have no idea how their pension provider voted, or whether their views were reflected at all. The Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) Financial Lives Survey found that only 24% of all UK adults are highly engaged with their pension.

This disconnect means that even savers who care deeply about issues like fair pay, climate change, public health or sustainable business practices often have no practical way to make their voices heard through their pension.

How PensionBee is listening to customers

At PensionBee we believe that companies that focus on their contribution to society and the planet:

• have a better long-term chance of being financially sustainable; and 
• will bring stronger returns for our customers. 

That's why we survey our customers each year to understand their views on the topics that matter the most to them. We then use this feedback to shape our approach to voting and engagement with the companies held in our plans.

In our most recent surveys, customers in our Climate Plan told us that reducing greenhouse gas emissions was their top climate-related priority. It was ranked first by 34% of respondents, with credible net-zero transition plans close behind. On social issues, customers in our Tracker Plan ranked ending child and forced labour in supply chains first (chosen by 35% of respondents). Followed by ensuring workers are paid a real living wage (24%).

We published these findings in our Engagement & Voting Choice Report, so customers can see how their views are being reflected. 

We don’t just act alone. In fact, individual investors have more influence when they act together, which is why we work collaboratively with other investors through coalitions focused on specific issues.

PensionBee is a member of ShareAction's Good Work Coalition, pushing for companies to pay the real Living Wage, provide workers with secure hours, and close ethnicity pay gaps. We’re also a signatory of ShareAction's Long-term Investors in People's Health initiative. This encourages companies to prioritise the health of their workers, consumers, and communities.

Why shareholder engagement matters to your pension

The way companies are run has a direct impact on the value of your pension, and shareholders have more influence over that than most people realise. When investors actively engage with companies on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, it leads to measurably better outcomes.

The companies that are pushed to improve tend to perform better financially too. Sustainable funds posted a median return of 12.5% in the first half of 2025, compared to 9.2% for traditional funds. 

In simpler terms, the analysis shows that investing a hypothetical $100 into a sustainable fund in December 2018 would equate to $154 after about seven years. While investing $100 into a traditional fund over the same period would equate to $145.

This is why your voice matters. By channelling your views into our voting and engagement strategy, we can encourage the businesses you own through your pension to be better run and more sustainable, leading to better financial returns. That's good for the planet, good for society, and good for your retirement. 

Risk warning

As always with investments, your capital is at risk. Past performance isn’t a guide to future performance. The value of your investment can go down as well as up, and you may get back less than you invest. This information shouldn't be regarded as financial advice.