At PPG, we aim to champion all employees, empowering them to be their authentic selves and allowing everyone to reach their full potential.
In 2023, we achieved several key milestones, including:
- Launched Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) learning journeys globally to all employees and leaders.
- Grew our eight Employee Resource Networks ("ERNs") to more than 8,600 members, who are active in more than 60 countries.
- Garnered more than 24,000 participants who attended ERN events and DE&I learning experiences to foster a culture of inclusion and belonging across the organization.
- Featured globally recognized speakers Deborah Liu, Ritu Bhasin, Dr. Robert Rodriguez, Cecilia Lui, Dame Inge Beale, Bernice Chao, Petra Velzeboer and Steven Van Cohen to share their insights and powerful stories to inspire action and courage against bias, discrimination and microaggressions.
- Promoted and encouraged use of our Employee Assistance Program to include all global employees, ensuring access to a variety of tools and resources to manage the many facets of wellness.
Our Communities
At PPG, our community engagement supports our purpose to protect and beautify the world.
Our efforts are focused on education, employee engagement and community sustainability, three areas that represent an intersection of our business strengths and our ability to create positive impacts across our communities, all while integrating and upholding our values of diversity, equity and inclusion. Our global giving totaled more than $17.5 million in 2023, supporting hundreds of community organizations worldwide.
Within education, we seek to build the next generation of diverse and innovative leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics ("STEM") through programs such as STEM Talent Girls (STG) and the ASTI Robotics Challenge in Spain, X-Bots Robotics across the U.S. and several science centers worldwide, including the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh. In 2023, we invested more than $10.3 million in advancing STEM education, reaching 89% progress toward our commitment to invest $20 million by 2025 to advance racial equity in the U.S. by funding educational pathways for Black communities and people of color. We also committed to investing $2 million through 2025 to support workforce development initiatives that provide training and opportunities for future skilled workers in manufacturing and coatings application.
Our community sustainability investments deliver community transformations through colorful spaces, support essential needs (particularly in times of disaster), and provide opportunities to thrive in the communities where we operate. We activate the time and talent of our employees to make a difference in our local communities. Our COLORFUL COMMUNITIES® program brings together PPG volunteers, PPG products and financial support to provide a fresh coat of paint and rejuvenation to community spaces. We completed 60 projects around the world in 2023, 90% of which included elements of sustainability as defined by our internal guidelines, including 27 school makeovers as part of the program's New Paint for a New Start campaign.
As an extension of our sustainability efforts, we also committed to investing $5 million in environmental sustainability education by 2030. Our efforts aim to strengthen support of the next generation of innovators and maximize the impact within communities where we operate through partnerships with organizations such as the National Energy Education Development (NEED) Program, the STEM Learning organization in the U.K., and Junior Achievement in Brazil to teach environmental sustainability to students.
Human Rights
We respect the dignity and human rights of all people. As stated in our Global Code of Ethics, we comply with all laws pertaining to freedom of association, privacy, collective bargaining, immigration, working time, and wages and hours in our operations throughout the world. We also uphold laws prohibiting forced, compulsory and child labor, human trafficking and employment discrimination. We are committed to valuing differences among us in experience, perspective, background, race, age, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, culture, interests, geography and style. We strive for a collaborative environment in which everyone is embraced for their differences and has an equal chance to succeed. We base employment decisions on job qualifications and merit, which include education, experience, skills, ability and performance. We give equal employment opportunity to – and will not discriminate against – individuals on the basis of any status protected by applicable laws.
We expect all of our contractors, suppliers and other business partners to respect and uphold our commitment to human rights in their operations. Our Supplier Sustainability Policy builds upon our Global Supplier Code of Conduct by establishing expectations for sustainability within our supply chain. This policy reinforces our expectations that our suppliers, as well as their subcontractors, will comply fully with applicable laws and adhere to internationally recognized environmental, social and corporate governance standards, including those governing working conditions, wages and prohibiting the use of child and forced labor. Each supplier must evaluate and maintain sustainable processes and raw material sources throughout their supply chain and supplier base.