Overview
Empire State Realty Trust fosters a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace through training and development programs, specific strategies to diversify our workforce, and full transparency as we target measurable goals. We do all of this to carry out our company’s mission to create healthy and resilient buildings for in the communities we serve.
Investors & Stakeholders
Our Board is committed to frequent engagement with management and key stakeholders on our ESG objectives as well as company strategy, governance, and compensation matters. We conduct annual governance roadshows with our shareholders and offer director attendance. Our SVP, Director of Energy, Sustainability and ESG, as well as our investor relations, legal, and senior management teams also engage with our stakeholders throughout the year in a variety of forums with an emphasis on 1:1 engagement. Direct results of these engagements have driven increased disclosure and reporting.
Tenants
Tenants are our top priority and ESRT focuses on healthy, productive, and sustainably built environments which attract and retain tenants to position us for long-term success. We partner with tenants to develop customized tenant sustainability programs and initiatives, offer sustainability training sessions, and maintain consistent tenant communications across various outreach channels.
Employees
ESRT is a certified Great Place to Work—a prestigious global award based entirely on what our current employees say about their experience working here. We focus on internal development, community engagement, and attraction and retention of talented team members ready to work towards our ambitious goals. Our quarterly employee surveys and employee-led interdepartmental committees like our Inclusion Committee recommend opportunities for improvement that our management team welcomes and integrates into our policies and practices.
Health and Well-Being
It is important to ESRT that we care for the health, safety, and well-being of our employees and tenants. ESRT’s portfolio is made up of high-performance healthy buildings, with an emphasis on indoor environmental quality, to deliver on this commitment. The environmental quality of our buildings contributes to higher productivity, improved sleep, and increased cognitive function for our building occupants. 100% of our portfolio is WELL Health Safety certified, and we were the first in the America’s to achieve this certification in the Americas. The WELL Health Safety Rating verifies that we deliver on our health and well-being standards, keep spaces clean and sanitized, provide essential health benefits and services, and communicate our health and safety efforts with our employees and tenants.
DEI
We foster a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace where employees are encouraged to bring their authentic selves to their roles. The implementation of training and development programs, diversity-focused strategies, and transparent reporting of progress with our stakeholder groups like tenants, investors, and employees strengthens our workforce to be a stable, supportive, and productive environment. ESRT is a member of the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index which validates our commitment to diversity and gender equality in the workplace with progress in female leadership, programs for employee DEI training and education, and enhanced benefits programs.
Supply Chain Diversity
ESRT has implemented initiatives to audit vendors, services, and contractors to ensure supply chain diversity. Our Vendor Code of Conduct guides ESRT vendors and suppliers to meet our mandates and promote and measure sustainability, diversity, and ethical conduct in our business relationships. Through our Supply Chain Diversity program, we awarded over 21% of construction project contracts – which total nearly $7 million – to MWBE’s in 2021. Our practices promote the procurement of sustainable goods, such as green cleaning products and sustainable building materials, to foster the health and wellness of our employees and tenants.
Community
ESRT is a fixture in the communities where we operate. We have developed strong partnerships to foster community engagement and leadership to better the places where we live and work. Through community leadership, charitable donations, and volunteerism, we deliver on our commitment to our communities. One of the top priorities of our charitable giving strategy is to support local organizations in the New York City metropolitan area. We have partnered with organizations like the Billion Oyster Project, Harlem Grown, NYC Park Partnerships, Bottomless Closet, and the Lower Eastside Girls Club. We believe community engagement through employee involvement enriches our ESG strategy.
