Mars Receives Top Recognition in Human Rights Campaign's 2021 Corporate Equality Index

MCLEAN, Va., Jan. 28, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Mars received the highest possible score of 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation's 2021 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), the U.S. foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ workplace equality. The CEI rates companies on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars: non-discrimination policies across business entities, equitable benefits for LGBTQ workers and their families, supporting an inclusive culture and corporate social responsibility.

As a best place to work, Mars recognizes its responsibility to make a positive influence on society with its Purpose, "The world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today" and includes a diverse product portfolio of some of the world's best loved Food, Petcare and Treating and Snacking brands. Dedicated to the advancement of all current and future Mars Associates, the company's commitment to Inclusion and Diversity (I&D) is central to its Purpose.

"At Mars we pride ourselves as a great workplace. Our Associates are diverse in backgrounds, perspectives and cultures, but united to positively impact our people, pets and the planet for the world we want tomorrow," said Anton Vincent, President, Mars Wrigley North America. "Today we celebrate our Associates for their dedication to creating an inclusive workplace that is grounded in fairness and caring. I am proud their actions have been acknowledged with the 100 percent CEI score by the Human Rights Campaign. This recognition reinforces our commitment to building a culture where everyone has an equal opportunity to reach their full potential, be heard and valued."

Mars has spent time listening to Associates and leaders, auditing talent pipelines and I&D policies and procedures, as well as evaluating ways to strengthen the company's comprehensive I&D strategy anchored by four key pillars:

• Ensuring all our leaders are visible and accountable champions of I&D
• Embracing a culture of belonging that values and harnesses the power of differences
• Harnessing diverse groups of Associates and leaders that represent the diversity of the Mars business
• And equipping our business with cohesive policies, processes, practices and training – including unconscious bias programs – that support our I&D aspirations

More information on how Mars is prioritizing its I&D efforts can be found here: https://www.mars.com/about/inclusion-and-diversity

To further bolster support of all Associates, Mars is piloting ways to reduce any potential bias in the application and assessment process, resulting in even larger and more diverse talent pools. Mars also supports our LGBTQ Associates through our PRIDE! Associate Resource Group (ARG) as well as policies and benefits including non-discrimination protections, partner healthcare coverage, transgender healthcare benefits, parental leave and adoption assistance. The company is also proud to support LGBTQ causes including a SKITTLES^® and GLAAD partnership started in June 2020.

"From the previously unimaginable impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, to a long overdue reckoning with racial injustice, 2020 was an unprecedented year. Yet, many businesses across the nation stepped up and continued to prioritize and champion LGBTQ equality," said Alphonso David, Human Rights Campaign President. "This year has shown us that tools like the CEI are crucial in the work to increase equity and inclusion in the workplace, but also that companies must breathe life into these policies and practices in real and tangible ways. Thank you to the companies that understand protecting their LGBTQ employees and consumers from discrimination is not just the right thing to do—but the best business decision."

Mars is honored to shine light on its Associates and their dedication to fostering a workplace where everyone has an equal opportunity to reach their full potential, be heard and valued. To hear directly from Associates on what makes Mars a great place to stay and grow visit: https://careers.mars.com/global/en/blog.

The full report is available online at www.hrc.org/cei.

About Mars, Incorporated
For more than a century, Mars, Incorporated has been driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. This idea is at the center of who we have always been as a global, family-owned business. Today, Mars is transforming, innovating and evolving in ways that affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the world around us.

Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of confectionery, food, and petcare products and services, we employ 133,000 dedicated Associates who are all moving in the same direction: forward. With $40 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world's best-loved brands including DOVE^®, EXTRA^®, M&M's^®, MILKY WAY^®, SNICKERS^®, TWIX^®, ORBIT^®, PEDIGREE^®, ROYAL CANIN^®, SKITTLES^®, BEN'S ORIGINAL™, WHISKAS^®, COCOAVIA^®, and 5™; and take care of half of the world's pets through our pet health services AniCura, Banfield Pet Hospitals™, BluePearl^®, Linnaeus, Pet Partners™, and VCA™.

We know we can only be truly successful if our partners and the communities in which we operate prosper as well. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire our Associates to take action every day to help create a world tomorrow in which the planet, its people and pets can thrive.

For more information about Mars, please visit www.mars.com. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.

About The Human Rights Campaign Foundation
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.

SOURCE Mars