In 2017, Airbnb released a feature called Instant Book, which sought to combat prejudice by allowing guests to book an Airbnb listing without prior approval. In addition to our ongoing diversity and anti-discrimination efforts, as we grapple with the effects of COVID-19, now more than ever we need to be a platform for economic empowerment that can help hosts, including Black residents, keep their homes and avoid displacement from their communities.. (go back), 105Id. In doing so, these companies have argued that they have already taken measures to address racial justice, such as investing in Black entrepreneurs, expanding credit and working to boost diversity within their ranks. [75]. This project was designed with guidance from data privacy experts and advocates, including the Center for Democracy & Technology, Dr. Latanya Sweeney and The Data Privacy Lab at Harvard, and Upturn. S7-11-19, available at https://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2020/33-10825.pdf; New Human Capital Disclosure Requirements, Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, Margaret Engel, February 6, 2021, available at https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2021/02/06/new-human-capital-disclosure-requirements/. In addition, there has also been a rise in ESG-specific funds as well as a growing number of ESG-specific products at mutual funds and other financial institutions. Restoration: The Role Stakeholder Governance Must Play in Recreating a Fair and Sustainable American EconomyA Reply to Professor Rock, https://www.esg.adec-innovations.com/about-us/faqs/what-is-esg/, https://investor.vanguard.com/investing/esg/, https://www.issgovernance.com/library/esg-matters-part-ii/, https://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2020/33-10825.pdf, https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2021/02/06/new-human-capital-disclosure-requirements/. . However, not all companies have been as eager and willing to comply with these requests. . Civil rights. 30-10825; 34-89670; File No. (go back), 78Rule 14a-8 No-Action Letter re: Stockholder Proposal to Citigroup Inc. from CtW Investments Group, Citigroup Inc., December 23, 2020, available at https://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/cf-noaction/14a-8/2021/ctwcitigroup022621-14a8.pdf [hereinafter Citigroup No-Action Letter]; Rule 14a-8 No Action Letter re: Johnson & Johnson2021 Annual Meeting, Omission of Shareholder Proposal of Christopher and Anne Ellinger and co-filers, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, December 16, 2020, available at https://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/cf-noaction/14a-8/2021/ellingeretaljohnson021221-14a8.pdf [hereinafter J&J No-Action Letter]. Racial Equity Audits can focus on various aspects of a companys business, including the treatment of customers at a companys physical locations, the diversity of senior management, the targeting of products, and even political contributions. Read More About: airbnb.com/against-discrimination. [61], Pursuant to Rule 14a-8, shareholders may submit proposals to be included in a companys proxy materials for its annual or special meetings of shareholders. Alleged retaliation against employees who raise issues of discrimination. Given current trends in ESG, public companies should stay informed on Racial Equity Audits and their adoption, crafting and implementation. The proxy advisory firms level of guidance may take varying formsat the low end, proxy advisory firms may increase a companys ESG or corporate governance score for having in the past or recently conducted a Racial Equity Audit. Even with an increase in the number of shareholder proposals requesting Racial Equity Audits, it is possible that companies may not adopt them as quickly or as widely as the public and/or certain legislative bodies would prefer. In 2018, Travelers paid out $450,000 to the National Fair Housing Alliance in a settlement of a lawsuit that claimed Travelers had denied insurance to landlords who rented to voucher recipients. From 2016 through today, over 1.3 million people have declined to agree to Airbnbs mandatory Community Commitment and Non-Discrimination Policy, and have therefore been denied use of the platform or had their accounts cancelled. The following proposals will be put to shareholders at its April 26, 2022 annual meeting, requesting: Historically, the insurance industry has engaged in racist practices impacting customers and potential customers from communities of color, including charging far higher premiums for auto insurance in Black neighborhoods as opposed to white neighborhoods; much lower payouts in homeowner insurance claims for Black neighborhoods; and instances of coverage denial for property owners who accept Section 8 vouchers. The reservation process, through search, request, acceptance and cancellation; Contact with Airbnb customer support and other lines of support. New York State Common Retirement Fund et al. In a world where we have seen data and technology used to foster discrimination, we are pleased to see Airbnb use them to fight bias on its platform. Currently, neither the SEC nor the major U.S. securities exchanges mandate publicly traded companies to make disclosures regarding Racial Equity Audit initiatives. Every company has a different mix of products, operations and services; therefore, according to practitioners in the area, it is important for participants in a Racial Equity Audit to identify the scope of the audit and benchmarks prior to conducting the audit. We have a responsibility to do more. (go back), 8Public Input Welcomed on Climate Change Disclosures, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Acting Chair Allison H. Lee, March 15, 2021, available at https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/lee-climate-change-disclosures. (go back), 120Amazon investors reject New York retirement funds call for a racial-equity audit, 10 other shareholder proposals, MarketWatch, Levi Sumagaysay, May 28, 2021, available at https://www.marketwatch.com/story/amazon-investors-reject-new-york-retirement-funds-call-for-a-racial-equity-audit-10-other-shareholder-proposals-11622242863. [45]. The first major US company to undergo such third-party racial audit was Airbnb. She described the products and policies Airbnb has pioneered to reduce racism on its platform. Shareholder activist Engine No. . 2017. [58] The audit produced three reports, which ultimately described how Facebook utilized the audit process to listen, plan and deliver on various consequential changes that will help advance the civil rights of its users in a number of categories and also recommended implementation of specific action items, including to (1) continue to onboard expertise, (2) build out the civil rights leaders team, (3) expand civil rights product review processes, (4) require civil rights perspectives in escalation of key content decisions and (5) prioritize civil rights. [59] The thoroughness of the audit and the response and subsequent actions taken by the company have led to the Facebook audit being heralded by many as a big success. The California legislature recognized the public desire to move towards greater diversity on public boards and codified set requirements. [33] The public announcement of the Racial Equity Audit and related diversity, equity and inclusion efforts appeared to not only rehabilitate Starbucks public image after the incident, but helped the company become the most popular restaurant stock on the S&P 500 with actively managed funds that are dedicated to ESG investing, according to RBC Capital Markets. Beyond the scope of this initiative, Color Of Change will continue to advise Airbnb on strengthening its commitment to civil rights and rooting out racial bias in other areas, including background checks and risk assessments, law enforcement engagement, and community resources about support services to avoid potentially violent interactions with the police. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Like just about every other industry, tech has felt the glare of the anti-racism spotlight following the killings of George Flloyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, and others in the Black community. If this occurs, legislators and/or regulatory authorities may at some point in the future step in to close the gap between investor demand and practical implementation. And lastly, whether a company has sufficient mechanisms in place to monitor effectiveness. Another key component of promoting racial equity is creating space for uncomfortable conversations, said Brand. SEC interpretations of this rule provide that proposals that concern ordinary business matters but focus on significant social policy issues would not be excludable because the proposals would transcend the day-to-day business matters. [82] In seeking to exclude Racial Equity Audit proposals, companies argued that these audits concerned day-to-day aspects of their ordinary business operations, including: (i) product sales and advertising; [83] (ii) customer relationships; [84] (iii) the nature of the companys public relations, messaging, and communications with its shareholders and other constituents; [85] (iv) workforce management; [86] (v) relationships with suppliers; [87] (vi) community impacts; [88] or (vii) decisions regarding the products and services [the company] offers. [89] Furthermore, these companies contended that the proposals did not focus on a significant policy issue that transcended their ordinary business. The Staff has stated that substantial implementation under the rule does not require the company to have implemented the proposal in full or exactly as proposed by the shareholder. (go back), 137Supra, Goldberg-Zelizer, note 96. [23] In the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd in May 2020 and the subsequent civil rights movement and unrest, many companies announced a number of initiatives and measures to address social justice issues, including committing financial resources and reviewing their own policies and practices. Indeed, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion is currently reviewing legislation that would require banks to conduct Racial Equity Audits every two years in an effort to promote diversity and equity. Racial Equity Audits are the practice of independently reviewing an organisation's policies and ascertaining how well they encourage and promote inclusion, diversity, and racial equality. (go back), 97Citigroup Proxy Statement, supra note 69. (go back), 90See e.g., Citigroup No-Action Letter, supra note 78; J&J No-Action Letter, supra note 78; JPMorgan No-Action LetterFebruary, supra note 77; Amazon No-Action Letter, supra note 83. A report on the audit, prepared at reasonable cost and omitting confidential or proprietary information, should be publicly disclosed on BofAs website. The proposal received 13 percent support and has been filed again this year (Item 10). According to certain proponents, the point of a Racial Equity Audit is not necessarily to critique a companys current platforms and efforts. In 2016, Airbnb partnered with the Color of Change to launch a three year review of the company's platform and . Wells Fargo, the third largest bank by assets in the US, along with seven other major financial institutions, received a shareholder proposal requesting the bank conduct a racial equity audit in 2021. [111] Despite the laundry list of examples Amazon cited in its No-Action Letter, the SEC did not concur that the proposal was excludable under Rule 14a-8(i)(7). [55], Some companies have independently engaged in Racial Equity Audits or similar internal reviews, usually in response to external pressures. Not only are Racial Equity Audits designed to help inform investors about their current and future investments from a social and financial perspective, but are also intended to help companies craft their policies and practices to achieve their social justice goals. Airbnb is setting an important precedent by taking measurable steps to examine and dismantle discriminatory online systems. public statements. [125]. Companies Negotiated with Shareholders to Withdraw the Racial Equity Audit Proposal. [21] Most shareholder activists are cognizant of the stance of institutional investors and proxy advisory firms on ESG issues and have increasingly incorporated ESG factors into their proxy campaigns. According to Bloomberg, Glass Lewis has broadly said conducting the audits would help companies reduce risks of high-profile controversies that may result in customer and employee attrition, regulatory inquiries and significant fines, and that [g]iven broad societal changes, it is particularly important for consumer-facing companies, which depend on their customers trust and loyalty, to address issues of racial equity. [102] On the other hand, according to Bloomberg, ISS has stated that racial audits arent warranted because companies are taking sufficient meaningful actions to address racial inequities such as expanding opportunities for people and communities of color, as well as improving the diversity and inclusion of its workforces. [103] The following chart sets forth the recommendations ISS and Glass Lewis made with respect to each Racial Equity Audit proposal in the 2021 proxy season: Source: ISS Corporate Solutions and Proxy Insight, During the 2021 proxy season, Amazon.com, Inc. (Amazon) faced a shareholder proposal requesting the company to conduct a Racial Equity Audit. [30], The impact a Racial Equity Audit may have on a company may be felt in many ways. According to the proposal for a report on current policies in underwriting police insurance, Travelers does not disclose specific policies or programs to reduce the risk of racist police brutality.. Cacace actively holds the position of Director of Anti-Discrimination & Equity Programs for Airbnb. According to Wenah, Airbnb lost 1.3 million users after launching the Community Commitment. Not everyone did. It must include a plan of action for resolution of issues identified, which should include responsibility and mechanisms for ongoing oversight and governance of racial equity related matters. (go back), 38See e.g., Opinion: Companies Have a Duty to Defend Democracy, NPR, Brett Bruen, July 7, 2020, available at https://www.npr.org/2020/07/07/887628306/opinion-companies-have-a-duty-to-defend-democracy (discussing corporations ability to be more responsive to critical issues to voters on the macro-level, such as gun control and climate change, as well as on a more personal level including Twitter, Uber and Blue Apron announc[ing that] they would give employees a paid day off when their country holds elections). [104] The proposal was submitted by Comptroller DiNapoli, as trustee of New York States Common Retirement Fund for public employees, which owns shares in Amazon. Financial institutions and asset management firms have become the focus of Racial Equity Audit shareholder proposals. Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 4 million Hosts who havewelcomed 1.4 billionguest arrivals in almost every country across the globe. (go back), 81See Citigroup No-Action Letter, supra note 78. Airbnb has consistently engaged in fighting bias and discrimination on its platform since 2016, after its first civil rights audit, authored by Laura Murphy, former Director of the American Civil Liberties Unions Washington Legislative Office and President of Laura Murphy & Associates. [118] However, Comptroller DiNapoli noted a human rights assessment is not the same as an independent racial equity audit, and shareholders should be weary of equating the two. [119], On May 26, 2021, Amazon shareholders rejected eleven shareholder proposals at the annual meeting. Color of Change successfully called for and worked with AirBnB to undertake such an audit. We would all be better served if more companies followed Airbnbs lead in developing robust internal systems for considering and combatting discrimination issues as products and tools are being designed and before theyre rolled out, said Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. This project will measure discrimination based on perception, using a privacy-centric methodology that determines the race someone might associate with a first name and profile photo. This post is based on an Olshan memorandum by Mr. Berenblat, Ms. Gonzalez-Sussman,Claudia B. Dubn, Rebecca L. Van Derlaske, Ian A. Engoron, and Sarah R. Matchett. BlackRock Inc. announced in April that it plans on undergoing an audit in 2022. We saw this occur in California with Senate Bill 826 and Assembly Bill 979 discussed in further detail above. ; see also Human Rights, Amazon, available at https://sustainability.aboutamazon.com/people/human-rights?workerCount=true&engagementProgram=true&productCategory=true. (go back), 79See Citigroup No-Action Letter, supra note 78; JPMorgan No-Action LetterFebruary, supra note 77. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. [38] Racial Equity Audits can be designed to help identify if and where these issues exist within a company so that management can address them most effectively. [109], Amazon argued the proposals call to review its impact on civil rights, equity, diversity and inclusion is a broad survey on the impact of the Companys policies, practices, products and services on societal issues, which implicates routine business issues, such as the products and services that the Company offers to its customers, the Companys business practices and operations, the Companys strategic decisions, and the Companys choice of technologies. [110] Similarly, according to Amazon, such an audit would necessarily implicate[] a multitude of ordinary business matters relating to the Companys day-to-day operations, which Amazon argued included decisions relating to, among other things, its charitable donations, hiring decisions, diversity and recruitment initiatives, customer relations, advertising, public relations and communications with its shareholders and the kinds of products it sold. Most companies who may have been unsuccessful in seeking no-action relief from the SEC to exclude the proposal or in negotiating a resolution with a shareholder to withdraw the proposal have recommended that shareholders vote against the proposals. Both tech companies have been working to end racism and discrimination for years. That movement, together with the disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have focused the attention of the media, the public and policy makers on systemic racism, racialized violence and inequities in employment, health care, and the criminal justice system. Report this profile Report Report. No major proxy advisory firm has issued official voting guidance on the implementation of Racial Equity Auditsand the two largest advisory firms, ISS and Glass Lewis, have been split on their support for shareholder proposals requesting such audits. In a conversation hosted by sf.citi, San Franciscos tech trade association, executives at Airbnb and Twitter shared how their companies are working to build more inclusive workplaces and products. [10] On the other hand, it has been found that companies that affirmatively adopt meaningful approaches to these issues may not only help progress environmental and societal goals, but may also potentially see improved financial performance. In 2016, this team launched the Airbnb Community Commitment, a prompt that asks Airbnb users to treat all people on the platform with respect, and without judgment or bias. Only those who accepted the commitment were allowed to continue using Airbnb. [142] Accordingly, as Racial Equity Audits become an increasingly important area for investors, it is possible that the SEC and the major exchanges may eventually require companies to make further diversity, equity and inclusion disclosures, which may include the existence and frequency of a companys Racial Equity Audits. Trilinc Global, November 4, 2013, available at https://www.trilincglobal.com/what-is-esg/. We are honored to partner with Color Of Change to help us take this work to the next level, to help us understand fully when discrimination occurs, how unconscious bias is manifested on the platform, and the effectiveness of our policies. The findings will be used to examine and address disparities in how Black users and other people of color experience Airbnb, out of fear of mistreatment or due to discrimination and bias. [49], Practitioners also stress the importance of auditors using the right methodology, including both quantitative and qualitative methods, and for such auditors to review not only information provided by the company but to gather its own information. (go back), 65All things (not) being equal, IR Magazine, Ben Maiden, Summer 2021, available at https://content.irmagazine.com/story/ir-magazine-summer-2021.pdf. (go back), 128SEIU and Change to Wins investment funds pushing for racial diversity in financial institutions, available at https://www.seiu.org/blog/2021/4/seiu-and-change-to-wins-investment-funds-pushing-for-racial-diversity-in-financial-institutions. A Racial Equity Audit is, at its core, an independent, objective and holistic analysis of a companys policies, practices, products, services and efforts to combat systemic racism in order to end discrimination within or exhibited by the company with respect to its customers, suppliers or other stakeholders. (go back), 138See H.R.2123Diversity and Inclusion Data Accountability and Transparency Act, Congress Bill Tracker, available at https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/2123/committees?r=61&s=1 (as of July 15, 2021). [139] The draft legislation would also require banks to investigate what ties they may have to slavery and disclose steps such institution would take to reconcile profits it may have received from slavery. We have made significant progress in the last few years to address painful stories of individuals who had requests to book a listing rejected and other negative experiences because of their race. Id. Advertisement The report served as a withering rebuke of Facebook's handling of issues related to technology,. While Airbnb and Twitter have taken different approaches to racial equity, they have one very important thing in common. Civil rights advocates notched a victory this week by securing a commitment from e-commerce giant Amazon to conduct a racial equity audit, a step they say is crucial toward ensuring that. News, John Biers, May 22, 2011, available at https://news.yahoo.com/big-us-companies-pushed-tally-014418300.html. Our team was very intentional, she explained. After a notice period, the data analysis will begin. Firstenvironmental criteria, which considers a companys actions as a steward of the environment, such as what steps a company is taking to address the depletion of the planets resources, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, or the effects of climate change. Facebook, Inc. (Facebook) also conducted its own version of a Racial Equity Audit in 2018. Like the other companies that received shareholder proposals on Racial Equity Audits in the 2021 proxy season, SEIUs proposal urged BlackRock to assess its behavior through a racial equity lens to identify how it contributes to systemic racism, including where its stated values are misaligned with the impact of its actions. [11], ESG considerations are becoming increasingly relevant to shareholder activists. Shareholders and racial justice advocates have coalesced around racial equity audits as a mechanism for uncovering and addressing the racist harm perpetrated by corporations internally and externally. Racial equity audits of corporations originated within the racial justice movement recently. JPMorgan's audit will examine the $30 billion commitment it made in 2020 to advance racial equity, which included funding of affordable housing, increasing the number of mortgages it. 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