NEW YORK — Exelon joined the United Nations Women’s HeForShe campaign today with a commitment to invest $3 million in STEM programs for young women and girls and to improve the company’s retention of women by 2020. Launched by UN Women three years ago, HeForShe was created to foster a movement with a systematic approach and targeted platform where men can become change agents for gender equality.
Exelon committed to improve retention of women at the company by 2020, with a goal to reach parity in voluntary turnover of men and women professionals. In addition, to continue building the pipeline of women pursuing careers in the historically male-populated energy sector, the Exelon Foundation will invest $3 million over the next three years to encourage and support young women’s involvement in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). The programs will create opportunities for girls and women to learn about and pursue careers in STEM-related fields.
“A diverse team of people – with different backgrounds, experiences, cultures and perspectives – makes Exelon a better company and a stronger community partner, and results in greater innovation and market competitiveness,” said Chris Crane, Exelon president and CEO. “We are actively and successfully recruiting women to join Exelon; it's just as important that they thrive here and find a long-term career with our company. We are pleased to join with UN Women and distinguished world leaders to create the change necessary to build a brighter, more sustainable future where generations of boys and girls have the tools to solve societal challenges together.”
In 2016, HeForShe launched a Thematic Champions program with global leaders who stand out as visionaries on gender equality. Each Champion is assigned a focus area and will actively leverage their unique resources to drive change that’s fundamental to gender equality. Crane was named as
one of six new HeforShe champions at their annual meeting.
“We are delighted to mark the third anniversary of HeForShe by having these leaders join our UN Women family as HeForShe Champions. They represent diverse sectors and areas of expertise, and each has carefully crafted commitments that will be invaluable to creating equal societies,” said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women.
Exelon’s HeForShe commitment reflects the company’s ongoing focus on policies and programs that support employees and promote gender equality. In 2016, Exelon became the first utility to sign the White House’s Equal Pay Pledge to close the gender pay gap. This year, the company expanded family leave policy with an industry-leading benefits package that extends to adoptive parents and partners, as well as primary caregivers of critically ill relatives.
The company’s efforts to hire, retain and promote employees from a variety of backgrounds earned it a spot on this year’s “Top 50 Companies for Diversity,” the national recognition from DiversityInc. Exelon also recently joined 150 leading companies for the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™, the largest CEO-driven business commitment to take action to cultivate a workplace where diverse perspectives and experiences are welcomed and respected.
