As part of our sustainability commitment regarding our own operations, we apply the principles of the Environmental Management standard of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 14001) at our facilities throughout the world. For all of our facilities in the United States, we also adhere to the Responsible Care® RC14001 Technical Specifications of the American Chemistry Council (“ACC”).
We maintain policies and procedures to monitor and control HSE risks, and to enable compliance with applicable state, national, and international HSE requirements. We have comprehensive HSE compliance, auditing and management programs in place to assist in our compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and with internal policies and procedures, as appropriate. Each of our facilities has developed and implemented specific critical occupational health, safety, environmental, security and loss control programs.
We also have strong Health and Safety (“H&S”) and Environmental and Sustainability (“E&S”) organizations staffed by professionals who are responsible for health, safety, process safety, sustainability, product stewardship and product safety regulatory compliance. Our H&S and E&S organizational structures feature executive management-level leadership, active oversight by our Board and dedicated H&S and E&S experts on staff. We have a Global Director of Health, Safety and Process Safety Management and also have Regional H&S Specialists and Managers who are embedded in the field and provide H&S expertise and support to operating sites. In addition, our Vice President — Environment and Sustainability oversees a team of environmental personnel that serve our operating sites.
As an ACC Responsible Care® member company, we continue to monitor and report our HSE metrics annually. Most recently, our 2023 data for Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions, water withdrawal and the mass of hazardous and nonhazardous waste generated was verified to the requirements of the WRI/WBSCD GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, revised edition (2004, as amended in 2013), the GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance (2015) and the Company’s metrics for water withdrawal and waste generated by an independent third party to a reasonable level of assurance. We included the assured data on our website and in our 2023 Sustainability Report, which we published in June 2024.
We also maintain a product safety and product stewardship management system that is compliant with the RC14001 technical specification and is supported by a highly skilled Director of Product Stewardship. We conduct product stewardship reviews as part of new product development and routinely evaluate product safety risk for raw materials, intermediates, and finished products.
Social Responsibility, including human capital discussions. We seek to act in a socially responsible manner through our various HSE programs as described above, our commitment to building a diverse and inclusive workforce, engagement with and support for the communities where we live and work, and advancement of socially responsible business practices through partnerships and other industry frameworks.
We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and applicants for employment, and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, gender identity and expression, national origin, disability, age (40 or above), ancestry, genetic information, marital status, veteran status or any other classification protected by law. This commitment applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, advancement, training, transfer, demotion, lay off and recall, termination, compensation and benefits.
It is our policy to comply with all applicable laws and regulations in each jurisdiction in which we operate in order to provide appropriate working conditions for our colleagues. This means that we comply with applicable laws regarding the employment relationship including those that (1) prohibit child labor, (2) set acceptable working conditions and working hours, (3) provide for fair wages, including minimum wages and overtime, (4) prohibit forced or bonded labor, (5) permit freedom of association and collective bargaining, and (6) prohibit discrimination, harassment and other forms of degrading or inhumane treatment. Using tools such as our Supplier Code of Conduct and contractual provisions, we also hold our business partners to these same standards.
We further prioritize our people by acknowledging our workforce is key to our success. We offer highly competitive salaries, benefits, developmental opportunities and work/life balance. We proactively seek to attract, incentivize and retain a talented and motivated workforce. Our global performance management and succession planning processes are designed to provide talented personnel to fill key leadership, innovation and manufacturing roles well into the future.
