Nearly half of higher income survey respondents said they would consider switching jobs to work for a sustainable company, research from Deloitte found. 

The study, which looked at 24,000 respondents in 24 countries between 2021 and 2023, focused on sustainability-related behaviours at home, at work or in the community. 

Researchers found a high probability (46%) of higher income workers changing jobs to work for a more sustainable company. This was more than twice the rate reported by middle income respondents (20%) and over three times that of a lower income group (13%).  

The study found discrepancies between different income households and their behaviour regarding climate change. Higher costs where the main reason why certain households were not purchasing sustainable products. Roughly 25% of higher income respondents said that they power their homes with renewable energy, around twice the percentage of lower- and middle-income respondents. 

“Our research highlights the troubling disconnect between concern and action on climate change for individuals, and the root causes of this gap. Most people agree climate change is a critical issue and want to take steps to address it, but too many are unable to do so amid rising costs, recession fears, geopolitical tensions, the long-term ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more,” Deloitte’s Global Consumer Industry leader Leon Pieters said.