As You Sow has updated its racial justice and workplace equity scorecards, showcasing massive improvements in the diversity-related disclosure of the U.S.’ biggest companies.
In a November 3 press release, the advocacy group stated that between September 2020 and September 2022, S&P 100 companies increased the release of their gender, race, and ethnicity hiring rate data by 298%, their retention rate data by 481%, and their promotion rate data by 300%.
As You Sow added that 94% of S&P 100 companies have now released, or committed to release, their EEO-1 forms, a corporate form detailing workforce composition, compared to just 23% two years ago.
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway was the only company to rank in the bottom 10 companies for poor disclosure on both of the scorecards, while PayPal, CVS Health, and Activision Blizzard were the only companies to place in the top 10 on both.
Meredith Benton, workplace equity program manager at As You Sow, indicated that Berkshire Hathaway’s low score was likely a result of Buffett having an “inaccurate understanding of the disclosure request being made by investors.”
Olivia Knight, As You Sow’s racial justice initiative manager, added that 12 companies have either released or committed to conduct independent civil rights and racial equity audits, and the activist group plans to further engage with other companies in the 2023 proxy season to “prompt action on this important front.”