Baxter Promotes Wellness, Inclusion and Diversity Among its Employees, is Recognized for Ongoing Sustainability Efforts
DEERFIELD, Ill., October 21, 2013 /3BL Media/ – Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) continued to advance sustainability within the organization by adding Business Resource Groups (BRGs) that support an inclusive and diverse work environment and encouraging employee health and wellness through its recent BeWell@Baxter Exercise Challenge. The company was also recently recognized in various sustainability rankings and awards, including the 2013 CPA-Zicklin Index of Corporate Political Accountability and Disclosure, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and the Golden Peacock Global Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance from India’s Institute of Directors.
Baxter Advances Inclusion and Diversity by Expanding Business Resource Groups
Baxter has established three new BRGs which support Baxter’s inclusive culture by raising multicultural awareness, developing employees to reach their full potential, providing outreach to diverse community partners, and enabling better connections with patients and business partners.
The new BRGs include Early Career Professionals, which offers connections across Baxter’s millennials and provides career development, networking, and community service opportunities and aims to facilitate the retention of new professionals; Baxter EnAbles, which focuses on promoting awareness and respect for those living with disabilities; and BaxVets, which devotes effort to the recruitment and retention of veterans as well as attracting new veteran talent. The groups join Baxter’s other BRGs, including the African-American Leadership Council; Asian Leadership Network; Baxter Equality Network, for LGBT employees and allies; Latinos@Baxter, and Building Women Leaders, for women in the workplace.
Baxter’s Global Exercise Challenge Promotes Fitness among Employees
During the company’s recent BeWell@Baxter Global Exercise Challenge, 11,000 Baxter employees from around the world exercised more than 10 million minutes as they competed for one of Baxter’s “Biggest Movers” awards. They took part in fitness activities, including jogging, yoga, volleyball, and aerobics, and many facilities offered educational resources, incentives and reminders with exercise ideas to keep employees focused on their fitness goals. Participation in the month-long event increased by 10% from 2012, and the number of minutes exercised increased by 28%. The BeWell@Baxter Exercise Challenge is part of Baxter’s overall commitment to the health and safety of its employees, one of the company’s nine sustainability priorities. To read more about this year’s Challenge, see: http://www.baxter.com/press_room/features/2013/exercise_challenge.html.
Baxter Recognized in Various Sustainability Rankings
Baxter has been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World) and the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index (DJSI North America) for the 15th consecutive year since the launch of the DJSI in 1999.
The DJSI tracks the financial performance of the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide, enabling investors to integrate sustainability considerations into their portfolios. The indices cover approximately $6 billion in assets under management. For more information, see http://www.sustainability-indexes.com/index.jsp.
The company was also ranked as the Healthcare Equipment and Supplies sector leader for political disclosure, transparency, and accountability in the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) report The 2013 CPA-Zicklin Index of Corporate Political Accountability and Disclosure. The third annual index reports on the political disclosure policies of the top 200 companies in the S&P 500. Baxter’s annual Political Contributions Report provides information about corporate contributions made in the United States by Baxter as well as contributions made by its Political Action Committee, BAXPAC. It also includes information about Baxter's lobbying expenses and membership in trade and industry groups. For more information, see http://www.politicalaccountability.net/ and http://sustainability.baxter.com/public-policy/political-contribution-report.html.
In addition, Baxter has been awarded the Golden Peacock Global Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance for 2013. The Golden Peacock Awards are a set of national and global awards in India designed to improve quality and productivity in organizations, and are affiliated with the Institute of Directors, a non-profit body of directors in India. Baxter is committed to operating responsibly in the interest of the company’s key stakeholders, including local communities. Examples of sustainability efforts in India include: reducing SOx emissions by nearly 57% in 2012 compared to 2011, after switching from fuel oil to biomass fuels and natural gas at some of its facilities in India; planting approximately 300 trees in and around the ground of Baxter’s Manesar, India, facility during Baxter World Environment Week in 2012; and supporting Sightsavers International in Delhi, India, with a grant through The Baxter International Foundation, Baxter’s philanthropic arm, to increase access to healthcare.
About Baxter
Baxter's commitment to sustainability spans more than three decades. The company is included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and has been recognized by Corporate Responsibility magazine as one of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens and Newsweek’s Green Rankings as a leading U.S. healthcare company. Baxter is a member of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard School of Public Health, Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College, and the Ethics & Compliance Officer Association. The company endorses the Ceres principles and is an Organizational Stakeholder of the Global Reporting Initiative. Further information about Baxter’s sustainability activities can be found at www.sustainability.baxter.com.
Baxter International Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures and markets products that save and sustain the lives of people with hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney disease, trauma, and other chronic and acute medical conditions. As a global, diversified healthcare company, Baxter applies a unique combination of expertise in medical devices, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology to create products that advance patient care worldwide.
