Duke Realty : Why Pay Equity Is a Big Deal at Duke Realty

Jenny Bean, Chief Human Resources Officer

People stay at a company for many reasons. One thing I admire about Duke Realty is that we consistently do the 'right' thing. We do the right thing by showing our associates that we value them and are committed to making our culture one of the best places to work in the commercial real estate industry. Ensuring equitable treatment in terms of pay, opportunity for advancement, and exposure to new challenges helps associates understand they can reach their full potential here.

March 24^th is Equal Pay Day. We recognize this day to do our part in holding ourselves accountable and to show our support for equal pay for women and people of color.

Pay equity has long been important to Duke Realty, and our human resources team has embedded processes and checkpoints throughout the year to keep pay equity top-of-mind.

In fact, we look at pay equity several times during the year-when hiring a new employee, at mid-year, at talent review sessions, and at year-end. Maintaining transparency and promoting trust in the process are essential steps.

And this year, in 2021, we have hired a third-party provider to analyze both our gender and minority pay equity-to ensure our positive results are statistically verified by an outside, unbiased consultant.

Equity allows us to provide each and every one of our employees with the opportunity to achieve their full potential. It helps us attract-and retain-the best talent. And it is so important to our diversity and inclusion efforts that we recently changed the name of our Diversity and Inclusion Council-now the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council. As is so often the case, doing the right thing for our employees turns out to be the best thing for our customers-and our business.

So to any company that may be looking at how to best address pay equity-on Equal Pay Day, or any other day-I urge you to take the steps needed to make your process more robust.

The rewards, for your employees, your community, and your business, are far greater than any challenges you may face along the way.