Diversity and Inclusion
The pulse of PG&E is supplied by the 20,000 individuals who make our company stronger and safer through their wide range of backgrounds, cultures and experiences. This diversity empowers us to anticipate, understand and respond more effectively to the needs of our approximately 15 million customers in thousands of California communities.
PG&E regularly looks for opportunities to coordinate and leverage our workforce, supplier and community diversity initiatives through the leadership of our chief diversity officer. A Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee, comprised of leaders representing a diverse mix from across the company, provides feedback to ensure that our action plans are meeting the needs of the company.
As one important measure, we exceeded our target for how employees perceive diversity and inclusion at PG&E. On our annual employee survey, 68 percent of employees gave a favorable response to six questions that are indicative of an environment where diversity is valued and inclusion is practiced.
Key Activities and Highlights
Eight hundred employees joined Pacific Gas and Electric Company President Chris Johns for our annual celebration to showcase the company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion. Featuring great food and entertainment, employees from throughout the company shared their diverse experiences and backgrounds and gained a better understanding of how diversity and inclusion benefits our business.
In 2010, we remained steadfast in promoting an inclusive culture in our workforce:
- We continued our learning programs to expand employee awareness of the unique differences among individuals and groups so we can better serve the needs of our diverse customers. This included offering a workshop on Diversity and Inclusion Leadership to newly promoted leaders and new leaders joining the company. We also introduced a series of short learning modules for supervisors to deliver to their teams in the field and the office.
- We maintained our network of Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Champions to help strengthen our commitment within and across our company. The network improves accountability by creating and implementing action plans that reinforce support from our leadership, expand learning commitments and allow departments to track and monitor results during the year.
- We continued to expand our mentoring program as a tool to advance women and minorities in our business—building leadership skills and helping employees grow through networking. We have more than 380 active mentoring relationships in place, a 45 percent increase from 2009. More than 2,000 employees have participated in the program.
- We continued to strengthen our Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), which contribute to the personal and professional development of thousands of employees and provide vital opportunities to engage employees in service to our communities. Three new ERGs were formalized in 2010, bringing the total number of groups to nine.
In 2011, we will continue to embed diversity and inclusion principles and processes into our hiring and career development activities. This will include deepening the impact of our Champion Network by gaining line of business commitments to participate in diversity recruiting activities, hold regular diversity discussions and engage in workforce planning to support our recruiting strategy.
With a focus on underserved communities, PG&E’s PowerPathway™ workforce development program continues to increase the diversity of our qualified applicant pool, contributing to the diversity of our workforce. For example, the average diversity of graduates from PowerPathway’s Skilled Crafts training area is more than 60 percent. And as a result of extensive community outreach, a one-year Electrical and Power Systems Certificate program designed and launched in 2010 in collaboration with College of San Mateo to source hard-to-fill apprentice electrical technician positions resulted in enrollment diversity averaging nearly 70 percent.
Our Diverse Workforce
PG&E is committed to advancing our vision of a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. Using Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) definitions, workforce statistics by race, ethnicity and gender for 2008 to 2010 are presented in the table below.
Representation of Women and Minorities in PG&E’s Workforce, 2008–2010
| EEOC Category | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Women | 27.5% | 27.9% | 28.2% |
| Officials and Managers | 27.5% | 27.4% | 30.9% |
| Professionals | 38.5% | 38.8% | 35.8% |
| Technicians | 16.7% | 17.5% | 18.3% |
| Administrative Support Workers | 68.4% | 69.2% | 70.1% |
| Craft Workers | 2.7% | 2.6% | 2.6% |
| Operatives | 12.2% | 13.1% | 15.9% |
| Laborers and Helpers | 7.5% | 8.6% | 8.3% |
| Service Workers | 8.1% | 8.2% | 12.6% |
| Minorities | 38.0% | 38.6% | 38.8% |
| Officials and Managers | 28.1% | 29.1% | 27.7% |
| Professionals | 41.9% | 42.6% | 40.3% |
| Technicians | 36.8% | 37.1% | 36.7% |
| Administrative Support Workers | 54.2% | 55.4% | 55.9% |
| Craft Workers | 29.8% | 30.2% | 30.2% |
| Operatives | 40.9% | 41.5% | 41.8% |
| Laborers and Helpers | 43.6% | 44.6% | 46.7% |
| Service Workers | 26.8% | 27.3% | 29.3% |
The percentage of women and minorities in PG&E’s workforce continues to trend above the national average for utility companies.
Comparison of PG&E’s Representation of Women and Minorities with the National Utility Average
| Category | PG&E | National Gas and Electric Utility Average1 |
|---|---|---|
| Women | 28.2% | 25.1% |
| Minorities | 38.8% | 22.9% |
Representation of PG&E’s Minority Workforce, 2008–2010
| Category | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 1.8% | 1.7% | 1.7% |
| Asian | 14.1% | 14.4% | 14.4% |
| Black/African American | 7.0% | 6.8% | 6.6% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 14.9% | 15.1% | 15.4% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Two or More Races | 0.2% | 0.4% | 0.6% |
Internal Monitoring
The Public Policy Committee of PG&E Corporation’s Board of Directors regularly reviews our diversity and inclusion practices and performance. Our Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee, comprised of a mix of leaders from across the company, reviews our progress on a regular basis. Additionally, we report our workforce statistics to the CPUC annually through a consolidated report compiled by the California Utilities Diversity Council.
Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action
PG&E has a long-standing commitment to employment policies and practices that meet the highest legal and ethical standards. We are also committed to ensuring these policies and practices deliver results. It is our policy that all employees have equal opportunities for jobs, training and promotions, regardless of race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any other factor that is not related to the job.
We are deeply committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from harassment and discrimination for all of our employees. As a federal contractor, PG&E has a legal mandate to take affirmative action to provide equal opportunity in employment by eliminating artificial barriers to the recruitment, hiring and promotion of qualified individuals, especially minorities, women, individuals with disabilities and special veterans.
PG&E complies with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) requirement to maintain Affirmative Action Plans (AAPs). The company’s AAPs are subject to potential audits by the OFCCP in any given year. These plans, along with our other diversity and inclusion initiatives, demonstrate our dedication to affirmative action and ensure that our full support will be given to the equal employment opportunity for all employees.
Our affirmative action programs are additional tools to ensure that we develop a diverse workforce prepared to meet the challenges of the future. In our increasingly competitive environment, and with the changing demographics of California and the nation, we are taking action to capture the contributions of a diverse and highly qualified workforce.
Recognition for Diversity and Inclusion
From employment to philanthropy and purchasing, our diversity and inclusion commitment and accomplishments have been recognized repeatedly over the years by respected third-party evaluators. Most recently, PG&E Corporation or Pacific Gas and Electric Company have been recognized by:
- Black Enterprise magazine—listed as one of its “40 Best Companies for Diversity”
- DiversityInc—ranked second on the “Top 5 Regional Utilities for Diversity” and 10th on the “Top 10 Companies for Supplier Diversity”
- Diversity/Careers magazine—named Best Diversity Company in the 2010 Readers Choice Survey
- Diversity Journal—named Pat Lawicki, former Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, a “Woman Worth Watching”
- Hispanic Business magazine—named to the “Diversity Elite 2010”
- Human Rights Campaign—received a perfect score of 100 on its Corporate Equality Index
- Savoy magazine—named Bill Harper, Chief Diversity Officer, one of the Top 100 Most Influential Blacks in Corporate America
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