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Committing to ACT

Corporate Home About Inclusion & Diversity 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:





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:

Commitment

  • Establishing a cross-functional Social Justice Council to monitor matters of inequality and advise Dow on our response.
  • Driving policy change through engagement at the U.S. state and federal levels, including with the Congressional Black Caucus, and directing funding to organizations dedicated to fighting racial injustice, including judicial reform, healthcare disparities and economic inequalities in the Black community.
  • Establish employee paid time off policy for voting and other non-partisan related civic activities.

Progress

  • Launched the Social Justice Council in the U.S.
  • Announced 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. View announcement.
  • To promote advocacy among our employees, Dow has created a new paid time off policy for voting and other non-partisan related civic activities.
  • 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. Read press release.
  • 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.
  • Karen S. Carter, chief Human Resources officer and chief Inclusion officer for Dow appointed to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Black Leadership Advisory Council.




Community

We will respond to racism and racial inequality in our communities:

Commitment

  • 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.
  • Include Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a U.S. paid holiday and an opportunity for a day of service.
  • Ensure our procurement practices eliminate any barriers for Black-owned and all minority-owned enterprises to do business with Dow and influence our entire supply chain to do the same.

Progress





Talent

To improve representation across all levels of the company to help and ensure our workforce reflects the stakeholders we serve, we committed to:

Commitment

  • Ensure a strong focus on retention and development of our Black employees.
  • Build a more diverse talent pipeline for Dow and our industry through further strategic investment in historically Black colleges and universities, and community college skilled trades programs.
  • Redouble our efforts and maximize the impact of our existing diversity recruiting programs, such as Diamond Symposium and BEST Symposium.
  • Require racial equity and advanced inclusion training for all our leaders and Human Resources professionals.

Progress

  • Announced a total investment of more than $5 million to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and community college skilled trades programs through 2024. Read the announcement here. $4.6 million of this investment is in addition to our Dow ACTs pledge.
  • Completed the first cohort of our Advocacy-in-Action Sponsorship Program for the development and advancement of Black Dow leaders, the second Cohort will be launched in 2H2021.
  • Hosted 4th year of the Diamond Symposium and 14th year of the BEST Symposium in a virtual format – each achieving new benchmark results in 2020.
  • Established Advanced Inclusion Training containing racial equity topics for U.S.-based people leaders and HR partners.
  • Established Dow Student Mentor Academies in Saginaw, Mich., and expanded along the U.S. Gulf Coast, investing $690,000 to mentor and train underserved student populations through 2023. Learn more about the Dow Leadership Academy.

Committing to Progress

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 2019 logo

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.

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.

Inclusion & Diversity Updates

Teneo, The Ford Foundation And The Executive Leadership Council Launch The Board Diversity Action Alliance

September 8 • Press Release

Dow named one of the 2020 PEOPLE’S “50 Companies That Care” by Great Place to Work® and PEOPLE

September 2 • Press Release

Dow leaders achieve top recognition on 2020 EMpower Ethnic Minority Role Model lists

June 18 • Press Release

Dow moves up to #22 on 2020 Top 50 Companies for Diversity list

May 9 • Press Release