Mayor Eric Garcetti, top center, launched the new RENEW task force aimed at boosting equity in the city’s business community. (photo courtesy of Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Office)

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti launched the Racial Equity & Newly Empowered Workplaces Task Force on Oct. 5, bringing together a coalition of private sector leaders around a pledge to advance racial equity in their workforces.

The task force, known as RENEW, is focused on building a fairer city by applying the principles and steps in a mayoral directive to promote racial equity in city departments to the business community. Every company that signs onto the endeavor will receive a playbook outlining how to meet their commitments, accelerate their work around racial equity, improve the diversity and inclusivity of their hiring and employment processes, and do more to open doors to Black and Latino workers.

“Racial equity is more than a lofty aspiration for our city – it must be a core value built into the very foundation of how our government leads, how our businesses hire, how our economy grows and how our communities thrive,” Garcetti said. “No single sector, public or private, can meet the challenge of rooting out structural racism alone, and RENEW will rally us around tangible actions to cultivate employees, clients and networks that reflect the extraordinary diversity of Los Angeles.”

Los Angeles is one of the most diverse cities in the world, yet far more needs to be done to translate that diversity into the workforces, executive suites and boards of leading companies and startups, the mayor said. Locally and nationwide, more than 60% of Black and Latino households have no assets in retirement accounts. Median earnings for Black and Latino workers with a bachelor’s degree are approximately 20% lower than their white counterparts. The number of Black and Latino professionals working in STEM jobs is 20% lower than the proportion of Black and Latino students graduating with STEM degrees.

RENEW aims to address the gaps and catalyze change through a dynamic coalition of companies that share best practices, create a peer-to-peer mentorship network and promote the RENEW pledge for wider adoption by other companies. The work will be founded on six pillars: build and shape an inclusive pipeline and equitable hiring process across all levels and functions, create equitable development opportunities for retention and promotion, reduce and eradicate any racial compensation gap, build a diverse procurement and vendor network that supports and promotes equity, include minority groups with an equitable company portfolio and brand, and support organizations and communities advancing equity through communication, donations and action.

To measure this progress, pledgees will regularly collect and track the metrics or comparable equivalents and aim for more hiring of and contracting with Black and Latino workers and companies by the end of 2025. Companies that are part of RENEW and have committed to the pledge include 4thMVMT, Boston Consulting Group, Gensler, Morgan Stanley, Relativity Space, SoLA Impact, Soylent and Universal Music Group. The Annenberg Foundation will support and fund the data collection and reporting process.

“Achieving equitable outcomes in our city is in all our interests. The companies and executives that are accepting the mayor’s invitation are demonstrating their willingness to lead,” said Karim Webb, CEO of 4thMVMT and the RENEW co-chair. “Together, we will prove we are more successful when we intentionally design pathways for equitable participation as stakeholders in our businesses. And we will invite others to join us along the way.”

For information, visit lamayor.org/renew.