Business

OP-ED: Upholding Our Values and Standing Against Discrimination

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “I’m outraged that anyone at Toledo Transmission – or any facility – would ever face threats or discrimination. My heart goes out to anyone who was touched by this bigotry. This is not who we are. I and the entire leadership team at GM, condemn – in the strongest possible terms – any type of intimidating or intolerant behavior…” — Gerald Johnson, General Motors North America Vice President of Manufacturing & Labor

Published

5 years ago

February 12, 2019

Oakland Post

General Motors Vice President Operational Excellence Gerald Johnson at the GM Global Headquarters Wednesday, April 12, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Jeffrey Sauger for General Motors)

By Gerald Johnson, General Motors North America Vice President of Manufacturing & Labor

Recently, the Toledo Blade and other media outlets have reported on racial discrimination issues at Toledo Transmission. I am General Motors’ vice president of North American Manufacturing. The plant in Toledo is under my team’s supervision. I want the city of Toledo and the African American community to know exactly how I feel about this situation personally and professionally, and I want to reaffirm our values as a company and the stand we maintain against discrimination.

I’m outraged that anyone at Toledo Transmission – or any facility – would ever face threats or discrimination. My heart goes out to anyone who was touched by this bigotry. This is not who we are. I and the entire leadership team at GM, condemn – in the strongest possible terms – any type of intimidating or intolerant behavior. If we find that someone has engaged in such discriminatory behavior and violated our no-tolerance policy, we will terminate them. We are proud of the culture of diversity and inclusiveness that we enjoy and we plan to protect it.

From the news reports, I understand some people are questioning how the issues have been dealt with at the plant. Even before the media coverage started, my team had been working aggressively to address these issues since they were reported internally. Here are a few important actions we have taken:

We immediately investigated the issues and took action to remove any offensive material. Sadly, we have not found the culprits in all cases but we continue to investigate. In addition, we have and are taking additional steps to ensure that no such conduct happens again, and that we find those responsible for such acts.
We have engaged law enforcement and engaged a handwriting expert.
We have also reiterated our strong anti-harassment/anti-discrimination stance to all employees and we are working with outside experts on additional training to reinforce our policies.
We have provided additional security, cameras and support to employees expressing concern for their safety.
We have stopped production at the plant across all shifts to conduct mandatory anti-discrimination and anti-harassment training for all employees in Toledo.
We have rolled out this training across the country in manufacturing and non-manufacturing sites with 50,000 of our people attending in-person sessions in 2018.
We reiterated our promise that employees can report any concerns, without fear of retaliation, and we provide multiple ways for them to do so safely and anonymously.

Recently, we met with Rev. Jesse Jackson and influential members of the Black, Hispanic and Asian Pacific Congressional Caucuses to discuss ideas to strengthen our diversity and inclusion efforts.

We believe in our workforce. The bad actions of one or a few do NOT represent the people of Toledo Transmission, the surrounding Northwest Ohio community nor GM in total. Every day, 99 percent of GM employees show up to work with a spirit of teamwork, helping one another build great products for our customers. Our company has a strong record of diversity and inclusion – I know this personally as a 38-year employee who has worked in six plants during my career.

Everyone at GM is expected to uphold a set of values that are integral to the fabric of our culture. That culture is predicated on an environment that is safe, open and inclusive. We have zero tolerance for behavior that does not live up to these values.

We believe discrimination is unacceptable – anytime, anyplace. My leadership commitment to our organization is that I will do everything I can to insure these values are maintained and protected. I expect the same commitment from leaders across our business. Together, we can aggressively address these issues and prevent such behavior from ever occurring at our workplaces.

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Business

Maximizing Your Bank Branch Experience

In a world of online tools that let you make banking transactions with the touch of a button, the idea of visiting a branch might seem unnecessary. However, if you haven’t visited your local branch recently, you might be surprised by what it has to offer. Your branch is much more than a place to deposit and withdraw money – it can offer the opportunity to build valuable relationships with people who can help you achieve financial independence.

Published

15 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Oakland Post

Diedra Porché, National Head of Community Banking, JPMorgan Case & Co.

Sponsored by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

In a world of online tools that let you make banking transactions with the touch of a button, the idea of visiting a branch might seem unnecessary.

However, if you haven’t visited your local branch recently, you might be surprised by what it has to offer. Your branch is much more than a place to deposit and withdraw money – it can offer the opportunity to build valuable relationships with people who can help you achieve financial independence.

Diedra Porché, Head of Community and Business Development at Chase, talks about how the bank model has evolved to maximize the branch experience for customers; how connecting with your local branch team can help you think differently about money and investing for your future.

How can a customer feel connected to a bank branch?

I love that question because we ask ourselves the same thing every day. Being part of the community means meeting with local leaders to find out what they need from us and then designing our branches around that. For example, at some of our community branches we have what we call a living room where we can host financial workshops, small business pop-up shops or nonprofit organization meetings. We also hire locally. You feel much more connected talking about financial aspirations with people from your community who went to the same high school, place of worship or maybe frequented the same recreation center down the street when they grew up.

How can I build a relationship with my bank?

Customers should feel comfortable sharing their goals, needs and wants with their banker. Also, it helps to remember the Community Manager is there to help solve your finance challenges and build a roadmap for success. You might have a short-term or long-term goal to open a business, build your credit, become debt-free, buy a home, or save for retirement, and our community team can help. At Chase, we strive to make dreams possible for everyone, everywhere, every day. Your financial future starts with building those relationships.

How can customers change negative perceptions they have about managing their money?

Far too often, customers are intimidated when they visit a bank. Our goal is to demystify banking and money myths empowering people to make the right decisions. For example, a big myth is assuming you need a lot of money to have a bank account. You don’t! Another myth is you need to carry a balance on your credit card to build credit — actively using your credit card can demonstrate that you can use credit responsibly but carrying a balance won’t necessarily improve your credit score. Finally, understanding mobile and online banking safety is key. There are so many safeguards and protections in place to guard your personal information and funds.

What’s an easy step one can take to shift their financial behavior right now?

Cultivating self-awareness is a good first step. Start by taking inventory of your spending. Be honest with yourself about what you need and what you want. Too often, people confuse the two, which leads to bad decisions. Rent is something you need to pay. An extra pair of shoes is something you may want but before you buy them ask yourself if that’s the best use of your hard-earned money. Too often, our beliefs and our fears shape our financial realities. If any of those beliefs are limiting your financial behavior, it’s important to question and examine them, and then decide you’re open to learning something different.

What’s one perception about banking that you’d like to change?

I think folks are surprised there are so many resources available and accessible both at our branches and online, it’s always a good idea to visit a nearby branch and speak to a Community Manager or banker. Outside of what we offer in-branch, our teams also work with local neighborhood partners who provide a variety of services to support the community, businesses and residents. I received a unique piece of feedback from an employee who started with the bank and had lived in the same community his whole life. When he visited his local community branch, he said, “Diedra, when I walked in, I felt dignified.” Every time I recount that story, it warms my heart because that’s what we want — we want our centers to belong to the community.