Shareholder challenge to Thomson Reuters over ICE contracts wins only slim support

June 10 (Reuters) – A shareholder resolution calling on content and technology company Thomson Reuters to review the human rights implications of its work with U.S. immigration authorities received only around 3% support at the firm’s annual meeting on Wednesday.

The vote on the resolution, proposed by the British Columbia government workers union, focused on products and services sold by the Toronto-based company to law enforcement that some investors and employees say could help strengthen the Trump administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

Thomson Reuters opposed the proposal, and at the meeting its chairman, David Thomson, said “more than 95%” voted against the shareholder measure, while “more than 3%” supported it.

“We welcome the outcome of today’s vote, which reflects shareholders’ confidence in the board’s recommendation to vote against the proposal,” a Thomson Reuters spokesman said.

One example of government work cited by supporters of the failed resolution was a $22.8 million contract with the Department of Homeland Security, which ended in May, that provided license plate reader data in part to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

That and other contracts were awarded to Thomson Reuters Special Services (TRSS), a unit of McLean, Virginia-based Thomson Reuters, according to federal spending records. The unit says its products help prevent financial crimes, detect foreign influence and help law enforcement and national security officials analyze data.

The company’s Reuters news organization is independent and operates separately from other parts of Thomson Reuters’ business.

A corporate governance expert said the vote showed Thomson Reuters’ biggest investors either thought the measure was unnecessary or were not willing to confront the Trump administration on immigration policies.

“With this vote, investors are not interested in sending any signals about the company’s work with immigration authorities,” said Douglas Chia, president of independent corporate governance firm Soundboard Governance.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, one of the major investors, said it voted against the measure because it could not support a proposal “where the company does not have significant gaps in governance or reporting of relevant sustainability risk.”

(Reporting by Ross Kerber; Editing by Daniel Wallis)