American Water Included in 2020 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index

The GEI expanded in 2020 to represent 42 countries and regions, including firms headquartered in the Czech Republic, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, and Russia for the first time. Companies range from a variety of industries, including automotive, banking, consumer services, engineering and construction, and retail. American Water was also included in the 2019 GEI.

“Our inclusion in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index reflects our ongoing commitment to gender parity at all levels of the company,” said Susan Story, CEO of American Water. “Our focus on inclusion and diversity makes us stronger and better as a business. It is important that our employees and leadership reflect the communities and the customers we serve. It is not only the right thing to do, but is also a smart business strategy."

The GEI tracks the financial performance of public companies committed to supporting gender equality through policy development, representation, and transparency. The reference index measures gender equality across five pillars: female leadership and talent pipeline, equal pay and gender pay parity, inclusive culture, sexual harassment policies, and pro-women brand.

"The 325 companies included in the 2020 GEI have shown their commitment to transparency and demonstrated leadership in gender-related data reporting," said Peter T. Grauer, Chairman of Bloomberg. "Disclosure of company statistics and practices is an important first step in supporting gender equality globally."

Through disclosure of gender-related metrics using the GEI framework, the firms included in the 2020 GEI have provided a comprehensive look at their investment in workplace gender equality and the communities in which they operate. American Water was included in this year’s index for scoring at or above a global threshold established by Bloomberg to reflect a high level of disclosure and overall performance across the framework’s five pillars.

Both the framework and the GEI are voluntary and have no associated costs. The GEI is a reference index and is not for use as a financial benchmark. The index is not ranked. While all public companies are encouraged to disclose supplemental gender data for their company’s investment profile on the Bloomberg Terminal, those that have a market capitalization of USD $1 billion are eligible for inclusion in the index. To learn more please visit the GEI website.

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