Better Health for All

EasyJet's core business as an airline has no significant direct positive or negative health impact. However, its operations generate greenhouse gas emissions, with 8,114,121 tonnes of CO2e in 2024, contributing to climate change which has indirect health effects.

The company aims for a 35% reduction in carbon emissions intensity by 2035 from a 2019 baseline and has a net-zero target by 2050. EasyJet faces risks related to data breaches and compliance with data protection legislation like GDPR, and was investigated by the Information Commissioner's Office for a 2020 cyberattack, though the investigation was closed. During the COVID-19 pandemic, EasyJet provided 100,000 free flights to NHS staff and volunteers, but also cancelled flights and reduced capacity, impacting travel for many.

Fair Money & Economic Opportunity

easyJet holidays offers a payment plan that allows customers to pay for holidays in installments with no interest charged.

However, easyJet was fined 29 million euros by Spain's Ministry of Consumer Rights for 'abusive practices' including charging extra for hand luggage or reserving adjacent seats.

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

As of September 2024, 83.9% of easyJet's employees were covered by Collective Labour Agreements, with 25 unions recognized.

The company's employee engagement score was 7.3 in FY24. Voluntary employee attrition was 6.4% as of September 2024. In September 2024, 2.4% of employees were on fixed-term contracts and 6.7% were on seasonal contracts. Between 2015 and 2023, easyJet failed to pay the minimum wage to 3,898 workers, underpaying them a total of £338,876.46 for training periods between 2014 and 2019. In 2010, easyJet was fined €150,000 and ordered to pay €1.4 million in unpaid taxes for violating labor laws by employing workers at a Paris airport under British labor contracts.

Honest & Fair Business

EasyJet received a penalty of €29 million from Spain’s consumer rights ministry for violating customer rights, which is approximately $31.5 million.

The company has a ‘Speak Up, Speak Out’ (SUSO) whistleblowing mechanism, which received 354 cases in FY24, an increase from 233 cases in FY23, and offers multilingual support with oversight from a Business Integrity Committee. The company reported three financial restatements in its 2023 Annual Report, including re-presenting liability for customer compensation, restating average capital employed and ROCE, and restating 2022 customer satisfaction data for comparison. Its verified GHG emissions footprint covered 92% of Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 Category 3 emissions in FY23. Sustainalytics rated easyJet as the fourth best airline worldwide and best in Europe in 2024, placing it in the top 15% for ESG controversy. The Board consists of 10 Directors, with seven independent Non-Executive Directors, meaning 70% of the board is independent. The company has an Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Policy and plans to launch a wider fraud investigation framework in early FY25. Absolute emissions and intensity metrics are verified by Verifavia.

Kind to Animals

easyJet holidays announced a new animal welfare policy on March 14, 2024, committing to not offer or promote attractions harmful to animals, including captivity attractions like zoos and marine parks, animal performances, animal rides, and sporting events involving animals.

This policy was created in consultation with animal rights organizations, including World Animal Protection, and incorporates ABTA’s animal welfare guidelines. The company will also work with hotelier partners to educate them on animal welfare. easyJet holidays partnered with UN Tourism to develop an ESG framework for tourism businesses and co-designed a measurement tool for monitoring tourism impacts.

No War, No Weapons

easyJet allocated approximately 0.01% of its FY23 revenue to peacebuilding initiatives, raising over £850,000 for UNICEF's Ukraine appeal and Children Emergency Fund.

The company's total turnover for FY23 was around £8.2 billion. While easyJet's winter schedule was affected by reduced demand for travel to Egypt and a temporary pause on flights to Israel and Jordan following the Israel-Hamas war, resulting in a £40 million writedown, this reflects an operational impact from conflict rather than direct involvement in the arms industry or military activities. No other specific, concrete data points were found for the remaining KPIs related to arms contracts, dual-use technology, sales to embargoed regimes, or other conflict-related activities.

Planet-Friendly Business

The company's total Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions for FY24 are approximately 10.68 million tCO2e.

It has an SBTi-validated target to reduce carbon emissions intensity by 35% by 2035, using FY2019 as a baseline, with a net-zero target year of 2050. Water use and biodiversity are assessed as non-material for direct operations. For waste, 65% of bases had recycling in place in FY24, and there is a target for <1% landfill by 2026 for delisted goods. The company partners with EcoVadis to assess supplier environmental performance. There is no formal deforestation policy. Packaging optimization has achieved a 5% reduction in items carried on board during off-peak flights, and the company is reviewing its onboard range to encourage suppliers to reduce packaging materials. There are no specific programs addressing disproportionate climate impacts on vulnerable communities.

Respect for Cultures & Communities

easyJet has established more than 150 formal partnerships with local communities, airports, and tourism boards.

The company demonstrates a high local employment ratio, with 99% of its Destination Management Companies (DMCs) workforce recruited from local communities. No cultural appropriation incidents are reported. While easyJet offers multi-language live chat support in seven languages for FY25, this indicates limited local language incorporation beyond basic industry standards. The company mentions a 'Speak Up, Speak Out' whistleblowing process, but there is no specific detail on its availability or use for community grievances.

Safe & Smart Tech

easyJet experienced a significant data breach in January 2020, affecting approximately 9 million customers with email addresses and travel details exposed, and 2,208 customers having credit card details compromised.

No further breaches have been reported in the subsequent five years. The company undergoes an annual PCI DSS audit by external Qualified Security Assessors. Mandatory data protection and digital safety training is provided annually for all employees, with onboarding training for new hires within three months. The company uses industry-standard encryption for personal data transmitted via its website and mobile app. easyJet undertakes regular internal and external vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, and red-teaming, with identified exposures following documented risk management and remediation processes. However, critical vulnerabilities are patched within 21-30 days on average. The company's data retention policy includes account data for 3 years of inactivity and event data for 3 years, which is longer than optimal. easyJet was notified to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) regarding the 2020 breach and may face a significant fine under GDPR. Customers have rights to data access, portability, rectification, deletion, restriction, objection, and withdrawal of consent, with a Data Right Request Form available online in multiple languages, and a response provided within 30 days. Penetration tests are performed on new system deployments and regular tests of live systems.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

In 2023, easyJet recovered 3.78% of its total waste, with 96.22% disposed of through landfilling, incineration, or combustion.

The company has implemented over 10 waste reduction initiatives, including a recycling program for dry stores, a partnership with Winnow AI that reduced hotel food waste by 56-68%, and the rollout of reusable cups and cutlery for crew, expected to save over 10 million single-use items annually. To reduce hazardous waste, easyJet is rolling out cleaning cloths that can be washed and reused up to 50 times. Annual internal audits of the Environmental Management System (EMS) are conducted, and external assessments for IATA IEnvA recertification occur every two years. There have been no waste disposal violations in the past three years. New crew uniforms are made from 100% recycled plastic bottles, preventing 2.7 million bottles from landfill over five years. easyJet has ambitious waste reduction targets, aiming for a <1% landfill target for delisted goods by 2026 and an 80% recycling target at bases for FY25. In FY24, 65% of bases had recycling capabilities, up from 31% in FY22. The company partners with EcoVadis to assess suppliers on environmental aspects, including waste. The introduction of more modern NEO aircraft, which are at least 13% more fuel efficient, contributes to product durability. A project to optimize loading achieved a 5% reduction in items carried on off-peak flights. The company has replaced plastic collar strays with recyclable cardboard ones and polypropylene outer shirt covers with biodegradable shirt covers.