Encouraging Advocacy, Community & Talent

We Must Act.

Racial bias and division are woven into the fabric of our society. Every day, members of the Black community encounter racism, bigotry, and threat of violence because of the color of their skin. As we reflect on recent racial injustices, we know it’s not enough to just condemn this bigotry. We have to dismantle it in ourselves and our organization.

We’ve pledged $5 million over the next five years to help accelerate change and developed Dow ACTs – a bold framework designed to address systemic racism and inequality within our Company and in the communities where we live, work and play. This strategic framework was informed by input from our employees and Global African Affinity Network (one of our employee resource groups) and has the full support of Dow’s Leadership Team and Board of Directors. Here’s how we plan to ACT for racial equality:

A: ADVOCACY

Dow has been at the forefront of corporate advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community. We’ve committed to take similar actions to address racism and racial inequality:

Establishing Social Justice Councils in each of our geographies to monitor matters of inequality and advise Dow on our response.
Driving policy change through engagement at the U.S. state and federal levels, we are pleased to announce a $1 million commitment over the course of five years, to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, directing funding dedicated to its National Racial Equity Initiative for Social Justice Through this initiative, the CBCF will place Social Justice Policy Fellows in the U.S. Congress for two years; establish social justice scholarships for students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities; and advance racial equity and human rights in research, data, analysis, and public policy related to criminal justice reform.
Providing paid time off for employees to vote in the U.S. elections.
Dow has joined the Board Diversity Action Alliance as a founding signatory. Signatories commit to increasing or maintaining the number of Black board directors, disclosing the racial and ethnic composition of their boards, and annually publishing a report on company diversity and inclusion efforts.
Dow has joined the, Civic Alliance - a growing, nonpartisan network of more than 220 member companies working together to strengthen our democracy by encouraging civic participation.

C: COMMUNITY

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, Dow responded with financial and hands-on support. Our response to racial inequality will be no different:

Recommit through our Dow Promise Grant Program to positively impact Black communities near Dow locations where economic and educational challenges may be barriers to success. We have pledged $100,000 to the program this year with plans to further increase our investment moving forward.
Include Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a U.S. paid holiday and an opportunity for a day of service. This is an important holiday and that we should have taken this step long ago. We are encouraging our employees to take a break from working in their offices and instead working out in their communities in partnership with local nonprofits on volunteer service projects that raise awareness and meet the needs of our underrepresented Black communities.
Ensure our procurement practices eliminate any barriers for Black-owned and minority-owned enterprises to do business with Dow and call on our entire supply chain to do the same.

T: TALENT

We have work to do to improve the diversity of our workforce and talent pipeline. As noted in our 2019 Shine Inclusion Report, Black employees make up 8.5% of our U.S. employee population. According to the 2019 U.S. Census Bureau’s estimates, the U.S. population is 13.4% Black. To improve representation across all levels and ensure our workforce reflects the stakeholders we serve, we will:

Ensure a strong focus on retention and development of our Black employees.
Build a more diverse talent pipeline for Dow and our industry through an initial investment of $500,000 this year to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and community college skilled trades programs.
Redouble our efforts and maximize the impact of existing diversity recruiting programs such as Diamond Symposium, and Best Symposium.
Require racial equity and advanced inclusion training for all our leaders and Human Resource professionals.

We know we must do better going forward and fully commit to our foundational responsibility to human decency. Our work through Dow ACTs is the smart thing to do and the right thing to do for our business and for society. These actions are just the beginning, and we will continue to share progress as we move forward in our fight for equality.

“It’s not just up to the African American community to fight the racism these incidents reflect. It’s up to all of us, especially those of us who would likely never personally experience a situation like this.”

Jim Fitterling
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

What We're Doing

Shine Inclusion
Report

Our ambition is to be the most innovative, inclusive, and sustainable materials sciences company in the world. This report captures the results of our inclusion and diversity efforts.

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BEST
Symposium

The BEST Symposium introduces Black, Hispanic, and Native American U.S. doctoral and postdoctoral scientists to rewarding careers in industrial research and opportunities with Dow.

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