Over our long and rich history, Tyson Foods has worked hard to create a culture of fairness, inclusion and diversity, because we believe that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths. We believe our team members learn from, understand and ultimately grow from our inherent racial, cultural, religious and gender differences. But it is clear that promoting a diverse and inclusive work environment is not enough. What will it take to eradicate racism and social injustice from our beloved country? I do not know. However, at such a critical time, on such a critical issue, Tyson Foods is committing to further action.
We believe deeply in our country’s founding principle that all people have certain Unalienable Rights and deserve equal protection. But as we know today, in the aftermath of the senseless and horrific killing of George Floyd and so many before him, this has not been the actual experience of everyone in this country. Each time we witness a tragic injustice, it reminds us that our country, our values and our beliefs are threatened by those who fail to grasp that they are attacking all of us each time they treat anyone with less respect because they are different.
The actions listed below are not exhaustive but reflect some of the many steps in our efforts to reaffirm and reinforce our core values as well as support our country and our team members as we work to drive real, lasting change for our society.
- We will implement a silence across all our U.S. facilities for 8 minutes and 46 seconds on June 9 to mark the funeral for George Floyd.
- We have a track record of charitable giving in the communities where we live and work. We will supplement this with gifts to several worthy organizations, through corporate donations totaling $5 million to be shared over a course of three years:
- The Equal Justice Initiative – link
- The National Museum of African American History and Culture – link
- The National Urban League – link
- The Executive Leadership Council – link
- Team member choice. We will offer up to five options and the recipient will be determined by our team members.
- In addition, we will ensure that the above-mentioned groups are eligible for funding in our employee-match program. Further, we recommit to the outstanding work of our Tyson Foods business resource groups.
We commit to those who have suffered to never forget them and to do our part to prevent these situations from reoccurring. To our Tyson team members, we commit to listen and take positive actions to address what we learn. To America, we commit to work with you to be the change that our country deserves.
Sincerely,
Noel White
CEO, Tyson Foods