3M to invest $50M over 5 years to address racial opportunity gaps

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The world changed when George Floyd died. Our company, our communities, our society at large is now more aware and engaged when it comes to social justice, racial equity and inclusion.

Still, many challenges continue.

3M made an initial commitment to listen, understand and act. Listening to our employees and better understanding the needs of our communities helped us identify where we can take positive and meaningful action to make a difference. Today, we’re pleased to share our next steps that will help #3m bring our full capabilities to power racial equity and inclusion within our company and community. We will continue to advance this work through our 3M Platforms for Change: 1) Racial Justice for the Future of Work and 2) Empowering an Inclusive Culture.

Racial Justice for the Future of Work

Even as we proceed with urgency, we know this is a marathon that will require resources, stamina and resolve. Education and workforce development are key to racial equity, and we plan to invest $50 million over the next five years to address racial opportunity gaps through workforce development initiatives. As a global science and technology company, #3m has a long tradition of philanthropy and volunteer initiatives that progress STEM equity and skilled trades as bridges of opportunity. Through our new investments, we will broaden access to science, manufacturing and skilled trades careers inside and outside #3m, with a focus on progress for underrepresented groups.

Our work starts in the Twin Cities and the first investments include:

• $5 million #3m Science. Applied to Life.™ UNCF (United Negro College Fund) scholarship and student support program for students in Saint Paul
• Expansion of the #3m Manufacturing & Academic Partnerships (MAP) initiatives at Saint Paul Public Schools
• $1 million annual investment to social justice partnerships, led by our employee resource network community champions and building on the initial investment from #3m Foundation in 2020

"Through their investment, #3m is making the single largest contribution in UNCF history for students based in St. Paul," according to UNCF Area Development Director, Laverne McCartney Knighton. "UNCF is the largest scholarship provider for students of color. This will make a significant impact for St. Paul students who are interested in attending historically black colleges and universities."

Empowering an Inclusive Culture

In 2018, #3m created a new vision for our culture, with Powered by Inclusion at its center. We formed a CEO Inclusion Council to drive change and bring the voices of our employee resource networks and other diverse perspectives to our senior team. We aligned to new external standards, continued to build the diversity of our leadership in support of our goal to double the pipeline of diverse managers, and provided resources and programming to build advocacy for inclusion across #3m.

As we advance our social justice initiatives, we are committed to:

• Accelerating representation globally across all dimensions of diversity, with a focus in our U.S. workforce on people who are Black/African American or Hispanic/Latino
• Systematically reviewing and adjusting our practices for fairness and equity
• Training and developing all #3m leaders in racial inclusion advocacy
• Using our advocacy to support inclusive communities and workplaces globally

“Progress requires us all to stand up as advocates for racial inclusion and social justice,” says #mikeroman, chairman and CEO of #3m. “3M will bring our science, our innovation, our volunteerism and our business rigor to these challenges. I stand shoulder to shoulder with everyone who wants to make a difference, and commit our expertise, experience and energy to improving our society one community at a time.”