Corporate Governance

Manufacturers depend on public markets to finance business growth, job creation and economic expansion, and workers rely on the success of publicly traded companies for their savings and retirement. As such, policymakers should rein in unregulated third parties, enable manufacturers to engage effectively with their shareholders and protect middle-class investors.

From small businesses seeking early-stage financing to publicly traded companies navigating the capital markets, the NAM’s corporate governance advocacy is critical to supporting the growth of manufacturers across the country. By ensuring that policymakers in D.C. understand our industry, the NAM is preserving manufacturers’ ability to finance growth, R&D and job creation while also protecting the  investments of millions of Americans who depend on manufacturing for a secure retirement.”

—Nicole Wolter, President and CEO, HM Manufacturing Inc.

Manufacturers' Priorities

  1. 1
    Enforce the new Securities and Exchange Commission rules increasing oversight of proxy advisory firms and reforming the shareholder proposal process.
  2. 2
    Reform the SEC’s proposed climate disclosures rule to make the requirements more workable for public companies and ensure that investors have access to material information about manufacturers’ efforts to combat climate change.
  3. 3
    Ensure that fund managers and ERISA fiduciaries fulfill their fiduciary duty to everyday investors and pensioners.
  4. 4
    Provide for effective oversight of proxy advisory firms and proxy ratings agencies.
  5. 5
    Ensure that any ESG disclosure obligations focus on material information relevant to company performance and shareholders’ investing decisions.
  6. 6
    Repeal or reform disclosure requirements that do not provide material, decision- useful information for investors.
  7. 7
    Avoid imposing corporate governance mandates that would limit manufacturers’ ability to efficiently allocate capital or recruit and retain a 21st-century workforce.
  8. 8
    Continue to bolster the single and multiemployer pension systems to provide certainty for businesses and retirement security for families.