Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) in comparison: critical analysis from a gender perspective

The new Directive 2022/2464 on Corporate Sustainability Reporting (CSRD) originates from the need to "further develop the reporting obligations of non-financial information in the framework of Directive 2013/34/EU" (recital 5). In doing so, the directive expands the content of the information previously requested and, more importantly, mandates that European companies provide this information in compliance with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The new directive and an initial set of 12 general ESRSs will apply starting from the 2024 financial year. Subsequently, the sector-specific ESRSs, currently under development, will also come into effect. Adopting a mandatory reporting framework represents a significant innovation, considering that the previous directive allowed companies to choose their reporting frameworks. The GRI guidelines were the most commonly used by European companies. Starting with the 2024 sustainability report, European companies will transition from GRI-required information to that required by the ESRS. This change in the reporting framework is expected to create an information discontinuity, in line with the CSRD directive's objective of further developing sustainability disclosures. However, whether this discontinuity will be achieved across all aspects of ESG disclosures is uncertain. This research aims to verify whether introducing the ESRS leads to a discontinuity in gender-related information. Gender issues are emphasised because they are undeniably relevant at the European level, where the EU is expected to demand particular transparency regarding companies' behaviour. This observation aligns with recent European regulatory interventions, such as Directive 2023/970/EU on the gender pay gap and Directive 2022/2381/EU on gender balance in board directors. The research also aims to investigate the qualitative and quantitative differences between the two reporting standards and outline the technical reasons for these differences. This analysis will assess whether an improvement in the quality and quantity of gender information can be observed following the introduction of the ESRS. The research method involves comparing standards used in international comparative accounting studies. This comparison provides more detailed evidence regarding the details and content of the information requested by GRI and ESRS, helping to outline the reasons for these differences. The analysis is necessarily qualitative, as there is currently no evidence of ESRS application. Empirical research will be possible only after the 2024 sustainability reports are presented. This work offers several contributions to the literature on gender. Firstly, it fills a gap by addressing an unexplored area of literature: the change in the quantity and quality of gender disclosure produced by companies following the modification of the sustainability reporting framework. Secondly, it anticipates the potential impact of ongoing regulatory changes on the information produced in the 2024 sustainability reports by European companies, highlighting expected benefits and possible application issues. Thirdly, it provides evolutionary insights into how the focus on gender disclosure changes and explains the reasons for this change. This research has some limitations. This preliminary study offers insights into the changes in gender dis-closure following the shift in sustainability reporting frameworks. To reach more analytical conclusions, it is necessary to wait for the first adoption of CSRD by European companies and, therefore, the publication of the 2024 sustainability reports in 2025. This will allow for sufficient evidence to understand the real impact of the new changes on the disclosure of European companies.