According to research carried out by UK communications company BT, nearly half of young professionals would choose to avoid working for an employer that showed poor social responsibility.

More than one third of respondents to the survey said that working for a responsible employer was actually more important to them than the salary they earned, whilst 44 percent said that they would positively avoid an employer that had a bad reputation.

The growth in importance of environmental issues is confirmed by the fact that a full third of the respondents believe that the protection of the environment should be the most important topic on the corporate agenda.

Alison Garner, corporate social responsibility communications manager at BT, said: "Young professionals are increasingly looking at corporate social responsibility when considering which companies and brands they might work for."

For more information about BT's approach to responsibility visit:

http://www.btplc.com/Societyandenvironment/index.CFM