Taking the Temperature: While the SEC's amendments to Rule 14a-8 allowed for an increase in the volume of environmental and social shareholder proposals, according to Vanguard and Blackrock, it also contributed to a decline in quality. For example, Vanguard described that at the end of April 2023, at the annual meeting of Starbucks Corporation, Vanguard-advised funds evaluated but elected not to support a shareholder proposal requesting a third-party assessment of the company's unionization policies. Although Vanguard considers workers' rights to be a material risk for Starbucks, Vanguard did not vote to support it because, in Vanguard's view, the company had already been taking effective action through, for example, its commitment to engage third parties to undertake a human rights impact assessment, which covered workers' rights. Vanguard also expressed its view that the board was taking appropriate action on the issue proposed.