Our Call to Action
Today, I join the country in honoring the legacy of George Floyd. I am deeply saddened by his senseless death and join his family, friends, and loved ones in mourning him. At the same time, we remember the families of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless other African Americans that have fallen victim to the grim realities of racism and police brutality in our country. We support the right of peaceful assembly to protest injustice and the message of the Black Lives Matter movement.
We hope that these most recent tragedies can lead to meaningful, permanent change in our country. But this inflection point requires more than hope, it requires a sustained effort to shake the status quo. In the words of Rep. John Lewis, “we may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us.”
The time has indeed chosen us. It is time to act and seize the moment, starting with Flagship. Effective immediately, I am committing Flagship and our 5,000+ employees to a series of actions that will lead to mid-and long-term employee engagement programs to support our African American brothers and sisters and other marginalized groups.
Flagship has always had a diverse workforce however, the real goal is inclusion and acceptance. Listed below are the actions we are taking immediately to ensure that all employees are heard, supported, and continue to work in safe, inclusive, non-discriminatory spaces:
- We are establishing an Inclusion and Diversity Employee Action Group (IDEA Group) comprising a cross-section of our employees from all levels and departments. IDEA Group members will be charged with creating a robust diversity and inclusion platform to keep this initiative front of mind for all employees well beyond this moment in time.
- We are also committing to include diversity and inclusion awareness retraining as a foundational component of Flagship’s leadership training programs. Inclusion learning components will be comprised of awareness and skill based training designed to proactively support and celebrate our African American colleagues and other marginalized groups.
- In an effort to eradicate racial bias from our organization, we will expand and continue to encourage employees to use our Let’s Connect internal employee support program to address, track, and resolve concerns that involve all racial injustice in the workplace. These concerns will be addressed quickly and dealt with consistently and assertively.
This commitment to inclusion and diversity has never been more important than in this moment. I encourage everyone in the Flagship family and our greater community to listen, seek to understand each other, reflect, and identify how we as individuals – and as one Flagship family – can drive the change we need to see in the world.
David Pasek, CEO