Trailblazer PACESETTER Late Bloomer

Lowe’s, a home improvement and hardware company, has been ranked as a PACESETTER on the Women’s Power and Influence Index.

Among its achievements, Lowe’s has established a clear equitable pay policy with a review annually ensuring its continued pay parity.   Lowe’s has a parental leave policy for all parents and offers assistance with adoption.

As of 2021, women comprise 38% of Lowe’s workforce.

Sufficient information regarding the existence of a childcare policy or subsidized childcare for Lowe’s employees could not be found.

Review the comprehensive WPI criteria and methodology.

✓ Does the company demonstrate a clear and transparent commitment to equal pay? 

“At Lowe’s, our associates are the driving force behind our success, and our priority is that they are fairly compensated for their contributions and commitment to serving our customers. In partnership with third-party experts, Lowe’s conducts periodic analyses using industry standard methodologies of our pay and compensation practices applicable to U.S. associates (who make up approximately 92% of our total workforce).”

Ref: pg 1, Lowe’s 2021 Pay Gap Analysis

✓ Does the company perform an annual analysis of gender pay equity and pay disparities? 

“At Lowe’s, our associates are the driving force behind our success, and our priority is that they are fairly compensated for their contributions and commitment to serving our customers. In partnership with third-party experts, Lowe’s conducts periodic analyses using industry standard methodologies of our pay and compensation practices applicable to U.S. associates (who make up approximately 92% of our total workforce).”

Ref: pg 1, Lowe’s 2021 Pay Gap Analysis

✓ Do female employees earn at least 95% of what their male counterparts earn?

“Based on annualized W-2 compensation data for 2021, which includes base pay, bonuses, and equity, Lowe’s associates who identify as female earned approximately 100% of what comparable male associates earned when adjusted for factors such as role, tenure, time in role and location, and associates who identified as persons of color earned approximately 100% of what comparable non-minority associates earned. Lowe’s also analyzed, without adjusting for differences in roles and qualifications, the simple median annualized 2021W-2 pay for U.S. associates and found that self-identified female median pay was approximately 97% of that of male associates while median pay of associates identifying as people of color was approximately 99% of that of non-minority associates.”

Ref: pg 1, Lowe’s 2021 Pay Gap Analysis

✓ Does the company demonstrate a commitment to actively attracting, retaining, and/or promoting women within the organization? 

“Our strategy for empowering women focuses on hiring, retaining, developing and advancing women and celebrating them at each stage of their journey. We are committed to identifying and removing obstacles and providing career opportunities for all of our associates, including women. One way we do this is by leveraging our internal HR data to understand the demographics and intersectionality of our team, giving us the ability to identify opportunities to recruit and develop women for advancement.”

Ref: pg 10, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company provide professional development programs designed specifically for female employees? 

“Unlocking women’s potential at all organizational levels through leadership development, upskilling opportunities and networking events that focus on development is important to our continued success. Lowe’s is committed to providing leadership programs and partners with Linkage to send top talent female senior managers and directors to the Women in Leadership Institute. During the four-day development experience, participants learned from keynote speakers, workshops, peers and coaches on how to manage the most common challenges women face when trying to advance their careers. We also have an affinity group called Women in Tech to help develop women leaders in the technology space. This group focuses on professional development, providing resources and mentorship opportunities.”

Ref: pg 11, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company provide professional development programs designed specifically for diverse employees?

“We also send select leaders to leadership development programs offered by our external partners, which focus on developing leaders from diverse communities. These development programs allow our associates to receive mentorship, resources and networking opportunities to better foster their leadership skills and prepare them for future career opportunities. These organizations include the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), Linkage, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR), Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (LEAP) and NextUp. There has been a longstanding partnership with these organizations, which, combined with our other talent partnerships, illustrates our commitment to working with diverse individuals at all levels of our business.”

Ref: pg 9, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company offer a formal mentoring program to support the career advancement of all female employees? 

“Unlocking women’s potential at all organizational levels through leadership development, upskilling opportunities and networking events that focus on development is important to our continued success. Lowe’s is committed to providing leadership programs and partners with Linkage to send top talent female senior managers and directors to the Women in Leadership Institute. During the four-day development experience, participants learned from keynote speakers, workshops, peers and coaches on how to manage the most common challenges women face when trying to advance their careers. We also have an affinity group called Women in Tech to help develop women leaders in the technology space. This group focuses on professional development, providing resources and mentorship opportunities.”

Ref: pg 11, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company offer a formal mentoring program to support the career advancement of diverse employees?  

“We also send select leaders to leadership development programs offered by our external partners, which focus on developing leaders from diverse communities. These development programs allow our associates to receive mentorship, resources and networking opportunities to better foster their leadership skills and prepare them for future career opportunities. These organizations include the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), Linkage, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR), Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (LEAP) and NextUp. There has been a longstanding partnership with these organizations, which, combined with our other talent partnerships, illustrates our commitment to working with diverse individuals at all levels of our business.”

Ref: pg 9, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company have policies and programs in place to actively recruit female candidates?

“Our strategy for empowering women focuses on hiring, retaining, developing and advancing women and celebrating them at each stage of their journey. We are committed to identifying and removing obstacles and providing career opportunities for all of our associates, including women. One way we do this is by leveraging our internal HR data to understand the demographics and intersectionality of our team, giving us the ability to identify opportunities to recruit and develop women for advancement.”

Ref: pg 10, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company have policies and programs in place to actively recruit diverse candidates? 

To increase diverse representation and develop a diverse talent pipeline, Lowe’s collaborates with key partner organizations to provide scholarships and leadership training to underserved communities. We proactively seek to create mutually benefit relationships across communities, industries and within organizations that align wi help us work toward our vision of building diverse talent, fostering an inclusive driving business results.”

Ref: pg 8, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✘ Does the company demonstrate a commitment to providing support and/or time off for women with children?

Information regarding this criterion was unavailable or incomplete.

✘ Does the company provide child care support for employees?  

Information regarding this criterion was unavailable or incomplete.

✘ Does the company offer subsidized child care?

Information regarding this criterion was unavailable or incomplete.

✓Does the company offer paid maternity leave for birthing parents?

“All eligible, full-time salaried or hourly associates receive up to 10 weeks of paid maternity leave and 4 weeks of paid parental leave, plus access to dependent care resources including adoption assistance. In 2021, we introduced embryo freezing services not based on medical necessity and LGBTQ+ inclusive.”

Ref: pg 4, Lowe’s Compensation and Benefits Policy

✓Does the company provide paid parental leave that extends beyond birthing parents to include surrogacy, adoption, and paternity leave?

“All eligible, full-time salaried or hourly associates receive up to 10 weeks of paid maternity leave and 4 weeks of paid parental leave, plus access to dependent care resources including adoption assistance. In 2021, we introduced embryo freezing services not based on medical necessity and LGBTQ+ inclusive.”

Ref: pg 4, Lowe’s Compensation and Benefits Policy

✓ Does the company demonstrate a commitment to supporting the health benefits of its female employees?

“We offer affordable healthcare plans to all regular full-time and part-time associates, including medical, dental, and vision insurance. Don’t just take our word for it. Use our Health Plan Identifier tool to see your specific benefits. All benefits are dependent upon eligibility criteria.”

Ref: pg 3, Lowe’s Healthcare and Benefits Policy

✘ Does the company offer women-specific health benefits for female employees?

Information regarding this criterion was unavailable or incomplete.

✓ Does the company have a policy listing prohibited behaviors, such as harassment and retaliation?

“Lowe’s is committed to fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion. Lowe’s believes that all associates should be treated fairly. Not only is it the right thing to do, but a respectful and supportive environment also leads to greater associate engagement and a successful business. Lowe’s prohibits discrimination or harassment based on an individual’s race, color, religious creed, sex, gender, age, ancestry, national origin, mental or physical disability or medical condition, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, military or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status.”

Ref: pg 7, Lowe’s Code of Conduct

✓ Does the company mandate all employees to undergo harassment and discrimination training?

“Lowe’s conducts training and development programs to foster open communication, inclusion and ensure equal employment opportunities for all. Associates receive regular anti-discrimination and anti-harassment workplace training and, annually verify compliance with the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. Our vendors receive responsibility training focused on the Vendor Code of Conduct and Lowe’s compliance program.”

Ref: pg 2, Lowe’s Human Rights Policy

✓ Does the company have a defined harassment policy that includes promptly addressing reported incidents?

“You may encounter situations that require interpretation of the Code. When in doubt about the best course of action, you should seek guidance from your supervisor or Corporate Compliance and Ethics. You must report conduct that is, or could be, in violation of the Code to Corporate Compliance and Ethics or to the EthicsPoint hotline. You may submit concerns openly or anonymously.

Lowe’s will promptly evaluate and respond to all potential violations of this Code. Depending upon the nature and circumstance of the alleged violation, the response could include conducting an internal investigation, engaging an outside party to investigate, and/or disclosure to regulatory authorities. Lowe’s expects you and third- party business partners to cooperate fully with any investigation. If a report of non-compliance is substantiated, Lowe’s will take prompt and appropriate action to address any issues.”

Ref: pg 6, Lowe’s Code of Conduct

✓ Does the company demonstrate a commitment to helping external stakeholders address gender equality issues?

“Our diversity and inclusion efforts in India largely focus on attracting, developing and retaining women. Our goal is to build a highly engaged, diverse and purpose-driven workforce and scale diversity and inclusion efforts to achieve broad business impact. Below are some of the programs we use to promote women in India.”

Ref: pg 11, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✘ Does the company offer and support initiatives that promote gender equality in the community?

✓ Does the company demonstrate a commitment to helping internal stakeholders/employees address gender equality issues?

“Unlocking women’s potential at all organizational levels through leadership development, upskilling opportunities and networking events that focus on development is important to our continued success. Lowe’s is committed to providing leadership programs and partners with Linkage to send top talent female senior managers and directors to the Women in Leadership Institute. During the four-day development experience, participants learned from keynote speakers, workshops, peers and coaches on how to manage the most common challenges women face when trying to advance their careers. We also have an affinity group called Women in Tech to help develop women leaders in the technology space. This group focuses on professional development, providing resources and mentorship opportunities.”

Ref: pg 11, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

✓ Does the company offer equity-focused trainings, speaker programs, or events for employees?

“In 2022, we hosted our 10th annual Women’s Leadership Summit, focused on helping current and future women leaders grow their influence, develop impactful relationships and use their knowledge and leadership to guide Lowe’s forward. This year’s summit audience was expanded to all female managers, store leaders, male leaders, department supervisors, supply chain managers and assistant store managers. The wider audience led to over 13,000 participants, greatly surpassing the prior year’s attendance, and improved the networking, community-building and knowledge-sharing aspects of the summit.”

Ref: pg 11, Lowe’s 2022 Diversity & Inclusion Report

*Our Index utilizes binary measurements, where ✓ represents a score of 1, and ✘ represents a score of 0.

*All links are valid as of April 2024