Uniting People of Diverse Beliefs
In workplaces across America, diversity initiatives are increasingly including religion and belief as a core focus. This is building a network of trust that unites people of diverse beliefs to understand, respect, and protect each others’ religious freedoms at work and all around the world.
Indeed, America’s biggest companies are embracing religiously inclusive workplaces at a faster pace than ever before, according to the 2024 Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index and Monitor, released in May by the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF).
The REDI report finds that 429 (85.8%) Fortune 500 companies now mention or illustrate religion as part of their broader commitment to diversity, more than double the number in 2022 (202 companies, or 40.4%). The study also found a 68% increase in the number of Fortune 500 companies showcasing that they have faith-oriented employee business resource groups (EBRGs), rising from 37 companies in 2022 to 62 in 2024.
A growing number of industries are now opting into the REDI Index survey to benchmark their progress in creating faith-and-belief-friendly workplaces. For example, Citigroup is the first major bank, KPMG is the first Big Four accounting firm, Kaiser Permanente is the first Health System, Aramark is the first in the comprehensive services field, and Rolls-Royce is the first in the Aerospace manufacturing industry to opt in. Firsts in other sectors include Target (retail), CMS Energy, and Altria (consumer goods), while the tech sector continues to be well represented by numerous companies including ServiceNow and Bosch.
Atria Participates in the REDI Index
Announcing this in a recent LinkedIn post to their more than 54,000 followers, Altria wrote:
We’re honored to be ranked as the 18th “Top Faith Friendly Workplace” among Fortune 500 companies by the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation. Our ranking is based off our score on the Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index. The REDI Index is a first in class benchmarking system for measuring how well companies integrate religion, including non-theistic beliefs, into their communications, policies and programs. To learn more about the REDI index, visit here. Learn more about Altria’s Employee Resource Groups here. #AltriaProud #Dare2Overcome
Examples of how this religiously inclusive workplace movement is spreading are numerous. Here are several examples of how this is spreading within, between, and outside of companies:
Within Companies: All-Hands Interfaith Events
Dr. Brian Grim, president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, is frequently invited to speak at corporate events launching or expanding their interfaith EBRGs, including at Ford Motor Company, Starbucks, Citi Bank, PwC, and Deloitte. Such events invite people from across the organization to learn and get involved with allyship-building activities organized by the faith or interfaith EBRGs.
Between Companies: Busting myths and misperceptions about other faiths
SAP Interfaith Alliance Team hosted an enlightening and thought-provoking virtual event with business people from SAP, Equinix, SSSC Trust and BNP Paribas Bank, who are members of faiths often misunderstood: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Scientology, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism. Watch to have your myths dispelled here: https://vimeo.com/841243469!
Outside of Companies: “Feed the Hungry Service Activity” sponsored by DELL, CVS Health, and Merck in collaboration with The Nation’s Mosque & Catholic Charities
The vision of the Dare to Overcome conference, which representatives of Altria participated in, is to overcome those things that prevent unity, justice, tranquility, security, general welfare, and the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. At this year’s May 21-22 conference, DELL Technologies’ Interfaith employee resource group led a pilot of a social impact activity that provides an example of a possible faith-led initiative that companies can take back with them to replicate in their own communities.
More than 100 attendees participated in a “feed the hungry” community involvement event on May 22 to draw attention to the World Hunger Day (a separate annual event observed later in May) to raise awareness of the global hunger crisis by encouraging action towards ending global hunger. It began with a multi-faith prayer gathering for those suffering from food insecurity and hunger followed by a hands-on one-hour community event packaging food onsite for the homeless in collaboration with The Nation’s Mosque, Helping Hands (Latter-day Saints), and Catholic Charities in Washington DC. DELL Technologies, in consultation with the Busch School of Business, is taking the lead to organize the event. Funding from Merck and CVS Health also supported this initiative. Nearly 1,000 people in the Washington DC directly benefited from this initiative. We plan to expand it at next year’s Dare to Overcome Washington DC conference (May 21-22, 2025).
Atria Give Together Grant to RFBF
Thanks to an Altria Give Together grant, the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation has been able to increase our outreach and organizing capacity to convene ERG leaders between our annual conferences at different levels.
“Keeping leaders engaged throughout the year provides more opportunities to address region or religion specific concerns, grow the movement of companies that embrace faith at work, and collaborate in serving their communities. Through resource and knowledge sharing, they help each other make their workplaces more faith friendly, which improves their REDI Index score, and paves the way for a more successful conference.” – Gary Ritterstein, Stakeholder Engagement & Social Impact Strategy Consultant for RFBF
Examples of Discussions Convened
- – Covenantal Pluralism in action
- – Golden Rule Across Faiths & Beliefs
- – Benefits of religious inclusion
- – The Business Impact of Faith-and-Belief Friendly Workplaces
- – How Faith/Belief-Friendly Workplaces Help Overcome Polarization
- – Peace Through Service
- – How Religious Freedom Promotes Innovation
- – Faith in Unity: Cross-company ERG collaboration
- – Honoring Difference with Respect: Living your core values
- – The Nuts and Bolts of Faith-Oriented ERGs
- – How to Sustain & Expand Faith Networks in Companies
- – Scripture & Prayer Programs in Workplaces
- – Latest Data and Research on Faith and Work
- – Innovations in Workplace Chaplaincy
- – More than ERGs-Faith accommodations and alignment to company systems & processes
- – How to Expand a Faith-Oriented ERG Nationally & Internationally
- – MBA Case Competition Competition on Faith@Work – learn how your company (or students) can participate
- – How Spiritual Resources Increase Resilience & Health
- – “Your Story” of Interfaith at Work and Life
- – At the intersection of Faith & Identity
- – Measuring the impact of ERG contributions
Going Forward
Altria’s Give Together grant is specifically helping us keep these initiatives moving forward. We look forward to further collaboration!