Nearly 90 U.S. Companies have implemented the principles as a result of NYC shareholder proposals

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New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr., on behalf of the City’s five Pension Funds, submitted a shareholder resolution to Alberto Culver, a U.S.-owned company that operates subsidiaries in Northern Ireland, asking the company to implement the MacBride Principles, a set of guidelines to establish justice and equality in the workplace.

Alberto Culver of Melrose Park, IL, is the fifth company to which the Pension Funds have submitted the proposal to this year. The funds hold 212,439 shares of common stock in the company with a market value of $9.3 million.

“Since the creation of the principles, more than 90 companies have agreed to implement the guidelines and work towards ending discrimination in the workplace,” Thompson said. “It is my hope that we will be equally successful with Alberto Culver and they institute a policy to promote and encourage tolerance and equality.”

New York City Public Advocate Besty Gotbaum added: “I am proud to see NYCERS take this stand for equal opportunity. As one of the most diverse and tolerant cities in the world, New York City should be a national leader in the fight against discrimination. Our workers' precious pension funds should only go to companies that promote diversity and protect minority employees.”

The MacBride Principles were promulgated in 1984 by late Irish statesman, Nobel Peace laureate, and founder of Amnesty International, Sean MacBride and several associates to serve as guidelines for corporations in Northern Ireland to ensure fair employment standards and foster a diverse workforce. The Pension Funds first successful agreement was reached with Digital Equipment in 1989, which has since merged with Hewlett Packard, and it was the first of 90 companies that agreed to implement the principles.

The proposal is sponsored by the New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS), Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York (TRS), New York City Police Pension Fund, New York City Fire Department Pension Fund and the New York City Board of Education Retirement System (BERS). Since 1989, more than two-thirds of U.S.-based companies operating in Northern Ireland in the City’s portfolio have adopted and complied with the principles instituted by the Pension Funds (see attached list of companies).

Earlier this year, Thompson submitted shareholder proposals to four companies, which the funds have more than $122 million invested, to adopt the principles. The companies were Claire’s Stores of Hoffman Estates, IL; Raytheon of Waltman, MA; TeleTech Holdings of Tampa, FL; and, Yum Brands of Louisville, KY.  

Of the four companies, two companies – Claire’s Stores and Yum Brands – received enough votes at their annual board meetings for the resolutions to be resubmitted next year. Raytheon and Teletech Holdings did not receive enough votes for resubmission next year. However, the pension funds have the opportunity to re-file the resolution with both companies in three years.

Last year, the Pension Funds initiatives were successful with three large companies – Coca Cola, Exxon and Marriott International – which the funds have more than $1.4 billion in total investments. Each company agreed to urge franchise holders in Northern Ireland to implement the Principles and adhere to fair employment standards.

The nine principles are as follows:

• increasing the representation of individuals from underrepresented religious groups in the workforce, including managerial, supervisory, administrative, clerical and technical jobs;
• ensuring adequate security for the protection of minority employees in the workplace and while traveling to and from work;
• banning of provocative religious or political emblems in the workplace;
• publicly advertising job openings and recruitment efforts to attract applicants from underrepresented religious backgrounds;
• adhering to fair practices in layoff and termination procedures and not favoring certain religious groups;
• abolishing any job reservations, apprenticeship restrictions and differential employment criteria that discriminate on the basis of religion or ethnic origin;
• developing job training programs for current minority employees for skilled jobs, including the expansion of existing programs and the creation of new ones to train, upgrade and improve the skills of minority employees;
• establishing procedures to assess, identify and actively recruit minority employees with potential for further advancement; and
• appointing senior management staff to oversee the company’s affirmative action efforts to set up timetables to carry out affirmative action principles. 

The trustees for the five Pension Systems are:

New York City Fire Department Pension Fund: Mayor Michael Bloomberg; New York City Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta (Chair); New York City Finance Commissioner Martha E. Stark; Stephen Cassidy, President, James Slevin, Vice President, Robert Straub, Treasurer, and John Kelly, Brooklyn Representative and Chair, Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York; Peter Gorman, President and Captains’ Rep., Nicholas J. Visconti, Chiefs’ Rep., and Stephen J. Carbone, Lieutenants’ Rep., Uniformed Fire Officers Association; and, Joseph Gagliardi, Marine Engineers Association.

New York City Police Pension Fund: Mayor Michael Bloomberg; New York City Finance Commissioner Martha E. Stark; New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly (Chair); Patrick Lynch, Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association; Michael Palladino, Detectives Endowment Association; Edwin Mullins, Sergeants Benevolent Association; Anthony Garvey, Lieutenants Benevolent Association; and, John Driscoll, Captains Endowment Association.

New York City Employees’ Retirement System: New York City Finance Commissioner Martha E. Stark (Chair); New York City Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum; Borough Presidents C. Virginia Fields (Manhattan), Helen Marshall (Queens), Marty Markowitz (Brooklyn), Adolfo Carrion (Bronx), and James Molinaro (Staten Island); Lillian Roberts, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME; Roger Toussaint, President Transport Workers Union Local 100; and, Carroll (Carl) Haynes, President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 237.

New York City Teachers’ Retirement System: New York City Finance Commissioner Martha E. Stark (Chair); Deputy Chancellor Kathleen Grimm, New York City Department of Education; and, Sandra March, Melvyn Aaronson and Mona Romain, all of the United Federation of Teachers.

New York City Board of Education Retirement System: Mayoral appointees Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, Alan Aviles, Phillip Berry, David Chang, Tino Hernandez, Augusta Souza Kappner, Richard Menschel and Marita Regan; Borough President appointees Jesse Mojica (Bronx), Martine G. Guerrier (Brooklyn), Michael Flowers (Queens), and Joan Correale (Staten Island); and employee members Thomas J. Malanga of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 891 , and  Milagros Rodriguez of District Council 37, Local 372.

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