Micron Technology published its first annual diversity and inclusion report and announced that its charitable foundation will contribute $10 million to fund global programs that support women and other underrepresented groups.
Micron is a memory chipmaker that was founded in Boise, Idaho in 1978, and it has grown to become the biggest player in the industry, with more than 34,000 employees worldwide. In releasing its numbers, Micron is joining the ranks of tech companies like Intel, which are increasingly open about the diversity profile of their workers.
Diversity means something different for each company. At Micron, 69 percent of its workforce is in Asia, while 29 percent is in the Americas, and 3 percent in Europe.
On a global basis, 70 percent of its workers are men and 30 percent are women. In Singapore, 30 percent of the engineering and technical team are women, while in the U.S. that number drops to 13 percent. In the U.S., 70 percent of its workers are white, 21 percent are Asian, 4 percent are Hispanic/Latino, 3 percent are black, 2 percent are multiracial, and less than 1 percent are listed as Other.
June 5th: The AI Audit in NYC
Join us next week in NYC to engage with top executive leaders, delving into strategies for auditing AI models to ensure fairness, optimal performance, and ethical compliance across diverse organizations. Secure your attendance for this exclusive invite-only event.
The company said the Micron Diversity & Inclusion FY18 Annual Report provides a baseline for tracking the company’s progress, examining a variety of factors, including gender, ethnicity, job roles, flexibility, philanthropy, and compensation.
Micron said it was pleased with its progress in hiring and retaining women in Singapore, and it pointed out that 17 percent of its workers at its factory site in Manassas, Virginia are black or African American. But the company acknowledged the need for more diversity.
“We recognize that embedding diversity and inclusion into all aspects of the organization will require continued focus and tenacity,” said Micron Technology global head of diversity and inclusion Karen Metz, in a statement. “This inaugural Micron report sets the foundation for driving and measuring meaningful change as we accelerate our efforts to build a global workforce that reflects the world that we live in, and the diversity of thought we need to drive innovation and competitive advantage.”
The Micron Foundation’s $10 million commitment includes recent donations to the Advancing Curiosity Fund and Diversity and Opportunity Fund for Virginia Institutions of Higher Education, and support for STEM camps for girls in Japan and Taiwan.
In addition to these newly established funds, the Micron Foundation will expand efforts to identify programs that support underrepresented groups at higher education institutions globally. Established in 1999 as a private, nonprofit organization through a gift from Micron Technology, the Micron Foundation has contributed over $100 million to communities where team members live and work.
Since 2017, Micron has been doing an annual global pay equity analysis to measure gender pay equity in every country where it operates.
Micron Ventures also announced venture funding targeted at AI technology startups, including $20 million for those led by women and other underrepresented groups.
The executive team has established an ongoing company-wide global goal to eventually reach 50 percent hiring of women as more and more women become available through recruiting efforts, as well as to increase hiring from underrepresented groups.
In November, Micron will be conducting a self-identification campaign in the U.S., allowing team members to identify as male, female, or gender non-binary.
