Danish pension company PFA has entered into a new pension agreement with Denmark’s largest retailer, Salling Group.

Under the new agreement, Salling Group will receive a ‘greener’ pension scheme and extended health insurance, which covers more employees.

From 1 July 2024, 20,000 Salling Group employees will get a new pension and health agreement.

PFA and Salling Group will extend the collaboration for the next five years, whereby a new agreement will focus more on climate and health.

New Salling Group employees will automatically get the opportunity to invest 25 per cent of their pension savings to climate initiatives.

This applies to investments that contribute technological and industrial solutions to the green transition, as well as projects such as solar panels and offshore wind farms.

Furthermore, current employees will be able to move their pension to the same climate profile that new employees are automatically enrolled in.

Commenting on the new agreement, Salling Group director of people, culture & sustainability, Louise Gade, said: "At Salling Group, we work ambitiously and purposefully with both health and climate, which are the main priorities in our sustainability strategy.

“Therefore, these are also key points in our choice of PFA, which must ensure our employees a pension agreement with a greater focus on climate and improved health insurance."

PFA CEO, Ole Krogh Petersen, added: "We are proud that Salling Group continues to be part of PFA's customer community.

“At PFA, we work purposefully to integrate sustainability and responsibility in the way we invest and run our business, and therefore we are pleased that Salling Group has emphasised this in the extension of the new agreement.

"When you place your pension savings in climate-oriented investments through PFA, the objective is that the shares must emit 60 per cent less CO2 than the world stock index. And during this year, the entire product will be CO2-neutral measured on scope 1 and 2.”

Gade also emphasised the importance of PFA committing to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTI), stating that, as part of Salling Group’s climate ambition, it demanded its suppliers set targets for reducing their emissions.

PFA has therefore joined the SBTI and begun work on setting climate targets.

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