Social Impact
Social & Environmental Screening
At Domini Social Investments we use social and environmental screens to select
all of our investments because we believe meeting certain baseline standards of
corporate citizenship is both good for society and good for the bottom line. We
believe our screens help us identify companies that are led by more visionary
management teams -- with more enlightened policies and practices ranging from
the diversity of their boards, to the way they treat their employees, to their
environmental performance. In the long run, we believe companies with fewer
environmental liabilities, more diverse boards and workforces, generous
employee benefits, and authentic commitments to their communities are better
positioned to succeed and prosper.
We hope that the following short profiles of Herman Miller, American Express and First Tennessee National give you a better idea of some of the types
of companies our screens have approved for investment.
Learn more:
Social &
Environmental Screening
View short profiles
of all 400
companies in the Domini Social Equity Fund's portfolio.
The Environment
Herman
Miller, Inc.
Herman Miller, Inc. designs and
manufactures furniture and furniture systems for offices and health care
facilities. It is one of those companies that do many things well, with
strengths in diversity, employee relations, the environment and product quality
and innovation. In 1999 Fortune magazine ranked the company third for corporate
responsibility and environment in its annual survey of America's Most Admired
Companies. In 1998 the company celebrated its 75th year in operation.
Herman Miller is a substantial user of recycled materials in its
manufacturing processes. Its own recycling activities include the use of fabric
scraps for insulation in packaging, the re-use of waste powder paint in its
furniture coating process, and the production of a 100% recyclable office chair
manufactured with as much as 70% recycled content. Much of the company's unused
production scraps are resold to auto, leather, and carpet makers.
Through the company's participation in the Environmental Protection
Agency's Wastewi$e program, the company has reduced its volume of transport
packaging of finished goods by 50%, eliminating the use of 500,000 pounds of
wood pallets and 982,800 pounds of corrugated boxes. The Wastewi$e program is a
voluntary EPA partnership whereby companies set environmental goals in three
areas: waste prevention, buying or manufacturing of recycled products, and
recycling collection. In 1999 the EPA awarded Herman Miller its Waste Wise
Partners of the year award for overall waste reduction achievements.
The company has undertaken a number of notable energy conservation
projects. At its cogeneration plant the company burns its non-plastic,
non-toxic waste to power the central plant's heat and air-conditioning and to
provide 10% of its electricity. The company owns a new building that uses
passive solar energy design methods to manage the plant's heat gain. Since 1990
Herman Miller reported that it has used only tropical woods that come from
sustained-yield forests. It has phased out use of Brazilian rosewood and
Honduran mahogany under this policy, although it continues to use mahogany from
other sources. As of late 1999, the nonpfrofit Tropical Forest Foundation (TFF)
provided the firm with information and technical support for purchasing, and
Herman Miller makes an annual contribution to TFF's programs. In addition, the
company sends staff members to logging sites to assess harvesting practices.
For several decades the company has had a policy that all facilities must
allocate 50% of their land to green spaces.
The company helped to establish the Green Building Fund, a nonprofit
philanthropic arm of the U.S. Green Building Foundation. The foundation works
to minimize the impact of new buildings on the environment and on workers.
Diversity
American Express
Kenneth I. Chenault, an African-American, was promoted to the position of Chief
Executive Officer of American Express in 2001. Mr. Chenault was President and
Chief Operating Officer of the firm since 1997. As of December 1999, 53% of the
firm's 10,763 officials and managers were women, and 18% were minorities.
American Express ensures that diversity is a priority at the firm by
maintaining a senior executive diversity council (established in 1991), and
linking management compensation to employee satisfaction and diversity goals,
including the ability to address diversity concerns raised by an annual
employee survey. The company reported that the results of its 1999 Employee
Survey, which measures employee satisfaction in a number of key areas, showed
significant improvement in half of the dimensions measured, and results among
different racial groups improved as well. The company stated that there were
gaps in some specific areas, and that it was working to address these.
In 2000 American Express received a number of state and regional awards
for its commitment to diversity. The firm has also appeared on a number of
"best of" lists, including: Fortune Magazine (2001 and previous
years): 50 best companies for minorities; Working Mother Magazine (1999 and
previous years): 100 best workplaces for Working Mothers, Careers & the
disABLED (1999): 50 companies with best reputation for employing and
accommodating the disabled; Minority MBA magazine (1999 and previous two
years): top ten recruiters of non-white MBA graduates. In October 2000, the
Women's Business Enterprise National Council named American Express to its
second annual list of the country's top 16 corporations for women-owned
businesses based on supplier diversity.
The firm's family benefits include the federally mandated 12 weeks of
maternity leave, some with full pay, phaseback for new mothers, a lactation
program, $2,000 in adoption aid, and resource and referral services. In 1998
the company formally initiated a policy to promote flextime, telecommuting,
compressed workweeks, and job sharing at all company locations. Child-care
benefits include free backup care, before- and after-school care, pretax
set-asides, and resource and referral services for both childcare and elder
care.
American Express is a champion of the American Business Collaboration
for Quality Dependent Care, a national organization dedicated to raising funds
for the improvement of child and elder care in communities across the country.
American Express has a record of leadership in its industry sector on gay and
lesbian issues. The firm has a written policy barring employee discrimination
based on sexual orientation and offers domestic partner healthcare benefits for
same-sex couples. In addition, the company has company-supported affinity
groups, includes specific communication about sexual orientation issues in its
diversity training and has advertising in national gay/lesbian media or paid
corporate support of major community events or promotions.
American Express Financial Advisors has established diversity labs to
address the financial planning needs of numerous underserved groups in society,
including Hispanics, African Americans, women, and gays and lesbians.
Employee Relations
First Tennessee National Corporation
First Tennessee National Corporation is engaged in retail and commercial
banking, mortgage banking, capital markets, transaction processing, credit card
businesses, and trust services. In 1998 the company acquired McGuire Mortgage
Company and Keystone Mortgage.
In January 2000, First Tennessee was included on Fortune magazine's list
" The 100 Best Companies to Work for in America." The company has
appeared on the list previously. The company takes a number of steps unusual
for a bank to ensure satisfaction of its more than 10,000 employees. For
example, the firm has made annual grants of 50 stock options to all employees
since 1995. The firm conducts quarterly employee satisfaction surveys, and
maintains a strong commitment to flextime schedules. In 1998 First Tennessee
told KLD that 91% of its employees were on some type of flexible scheduling
arrangement.
First Tennessee has provided "golden parachutes" to virtually
all of its employees to protect them from layoffs during future mergers. Under
this policy employees are guaranteed one year's salary if they are laid off due
to a merger. This is approximately three times the severance pay typical for
the banking industry. In an effort to increase not only employee, but customer,
satisfaction, the company has pushed decision-making down to lower levels,
where it stresses team efforts. Teams have the option to set schedules. The
company considers this emphasis on flexibility to be important in increasing
its rate of employee retention. From 1996 through 1998, employee retention has
improved from 4% to 6%, according to the company. For substantially all of its
employees, First Tennessee has a defined benefit pension plan. In addition, the
company retirement options include a 401(k) savings plan. First Tennessee
matches in stock 50% of employee contributions to the company 401(k) savings
account. The total company contribution is limited to 6% of employee base
compensation.
The company is unusual in making contributions to pretax flexible
benefits accounts. These contributions can vary between 3.2% and 5% of salary.
A portion of the company's contribution is tied to financial performance.
This
information is provided for informational purposes only and should not be
considered a recommendation as to the financial merits of any of the stocks
mentioned.
Special
thanks to our social research providers at KLD & Co. for allowing us to
reprint these portions of their social profiles. Portions © 2001, KLD & Co.
All rights reserved.
Unlike
other mutual funds, the Domini Social Equity Fund seeks to achieve its
investment objective by investing all of its investable assets in the Domini
Social Index Portfolio (DSIP), a separate portfolio with an identical
investment objective. The DSIP seeks to replicate the composition of the Index.
The composition of the Index, and holdings in the DSIP, are subject to change. View
the Fund's latest report for more information.
