Diversity and Employee Initiatives
At Mercury, we believe that our success depends on our ability to embrace diversity companywide and realize the benefits of a diverse workforce that includes a greater variety of solutions to problems, a broader collection of skills and experiences and an array of viewpoints to consider. We also appreciate the value of training and education and recognize the importance of encouraging our team members to develop their professional skills and expand their educational foundations.
Talent Management
The talent, character and passion of our team members and our unique culture define us. Our people are driven, smart and focused on Innovation That Matters®. Our work requires insight, ingenuity and commitment. Our culture and values are embedded in all we do.
We foster career growth and development through informal and formal mentoring programs, talent talks targeted to discussing career goals, 1MPOWER (our framework to building leadership capabilities) tools and resources through our career development portal, LinkedIn Learning and just-in-time webinars to help guide team members at all stages in their career journey.
Professional and Career Development
We invest in the professional development of our team members, selecting, developing and retaining a diverse workforce that will learn and grow as a One Mercury community. We are committed to ongoing employee training through a blended learning experience to include digitalization through leveraging innovative technology, self-paced LinkedIn Learning, fireside chats with leaders and informal cohort discussions.
Each team member is given a LinkedIn Learning account upon joining Mercury that enables them to access over 16,000 online courses, ranging from topics on artificial intelligence to project management. In addition, Mercury partners with Udacity as part of an upskilling initiative to enhance our team members’ artificial intelligence and data analytics capabilities.
Our highly rated leadership programs are built around our core competencies of teamwork, communication and execution. These programs offer a variety of custom leadership development programs and tools tailored for scaling leaders at varying levels of their career. Leaders are developed through a blended learning framework called 1MPOWER that provides learning paths to building the leadership skills, knowledge and behaviors critical to Mercury’s long-term success. These programs include a 360 assessment with an executive coach, fireside chats with leaders, cohort discussions, LinkedIn Learning and sessions on building business acumen. We are proud of the 100% employee satisfaction rate with our leadership programs.
We encourage our employees to take advantage of higher education and professional development opportunities. Mercury reimburses employees 100% for tuition and lab fees for up to the IRS non-taxable limit.
We conduct regular pulse engagement surveys and anonymous team member engagement surveys across our business to listen, learn and empower our teams to continuously improve. In 2019, we conducted a baseline survey, which had very high participation levels and resulted in an industry-leading engagement score of more than 80%, validating our healthy company culture. In our 2020 survey, with 91% team member participation, we maintained our high level of more than 80% engagement, even while managing through a global pandemic. Additionally, in our latest surveys, we took the opportunity to do a deeper dive and solicited responses and feedback to gauge whether our team members felt we were properly responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Participation in our April 2021 employee engagement survey remained strong at 85%.
Across the board, the leadership’s response was seen very positively, with an 89% favorable rating. Mercury’s remarkable leadership through crisis was also recognized externally when our CEO, Mark Aslett, was rated number one on Glassdoor’s “25 Highest Rated CEOs During the COVID-19 Crisis.” We are committed to operationalizing our learnings, including factoring survey insights into retention and promotion decisions for team leaders.
We consistently receive high overall approval ratings from our employees. According to our Glassdoor reviews, we had a 4.5 rating out of 5 as of June 11, 2021, with 98% of reviewers saying that they approve of our CEO and 93% of reviewers saying that they would recommend Mercury to a friend.
Our Phoenix, AZ, facility, our largest manufacturing facility, was recognized as Medium Manufacturer of the Year in 2020 by the Arizona Manufacturers Council for its accomplishments in championing innovation, excellence, sustainability and leadership in the manufacturing sector.
The Boston Globe ranked Mercury for 2020 as one of the Top Places to Work in Massachusetts, where we are headquartered and employ over 300 people as of July 2, 2021.
Employee Demographics and Statistics
Gender Diversity
The gender diversity of our U.S. employees is provided below for the three most recently completed calendar years.
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Women | |||
| Employees | 32% | 31% | 32% |
| Managers | 17% | 17% | 20% |
| Technical Employees | 9% | 11% | 11% |
| Men | |||
| Employees | 68% | 69% | 68% |
| Managers | 82% | 83% | 80% |
| Technical Employees | 90% | 89% | 89% |
During calendar year 2017, we added two women directors to our public company Board of Directors, who also serve as independent directors. We have a focused strategy to attract women engineers and women in leadership and technical roles.
Race/Ethnicity Diversity
The racial/ethnic diversity of our U.S. employees is provided below for the three most recently completed calendar years.
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black or African American | 2.4% | 3.4% | 3.6% |
| Asian | 17.2% | 18.0% | 20.8% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 13.7% | 13.4% | 15.1% |
| Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander/Native American/Alaska Native | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.8% |
| White | 60.2% | 63.2% | 57.2% |
| Two or More Races | 1.1% | 1.3% | 2.0% |
| Not Specified | 4.8% | 0.0% | 0.5% |
Voluntary and Involuntary Termination Data
Our voluntary and involuntary termination data for the three most recent calendar years is reported below.
| calendar year | involuntary terminations | voluntary terminations |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 6% | 7% |
| 2019 | 3% | 9% |
| 2018 | 5% | 10% |
Our attrition rates are consistent with the defense and technology sectors. We conduct and review exit survey data on a regular basis to better understand and reduce our voluntary attrition.
Employees Around the World
We pride ourselves on being a multinational company with locations in the United States, Switzerland, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Japan. Below is a breakdown of the number of employees in each country as of July 2021.
| country | number of employees |
|---|---|
| USA | 2,202 |
| Switzerland | 117 |
| Canada | 8 |
| United Kingdom | 9 |
| France | 1 |
| Spain | 14 |
| Japan | 1 |
Pay Equity
Identifying and quantifying historic pay gaps based solely on gender can be challenging given the unique backgrounds each of our employees brings to the company. Despite this challenge, and evidencing our strong commitment to closing the historical gender pay gap in the U.S., in 2018 we engaged an internationally known human resources consulting firm to conduct an assessment to determine the extent to which gender could have an impact on pay levels across the organization for our U.S. employees. That assessment found that women - without adjustment for factors outside of gender that might reasonably command higher pay in the marketplace from employers - are paid on average approximately 2% - 4% less than men. Based on the assessment, we have proactively worked to address each employee's individual circumstances to determine whether the pay gap was associated with factors other than gender and initiated a process to provide pay adjustments for women, as appropriate. Any adjustments have been based on the statistically derived recommendations from our outside consultant, and we continuously leverage market data and other statistics to inform promotions, adjustments and new hire offers to provide women with competitive pay without regard to gender.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Mercury is committed to providing an inclusive environment that respects the diversity of the world. We believe that the workforce required to grow our business and deliver creative solutions must be rich in diversity of thought, experience and culture. Our diversity and inclusion initiatives focus on building and maintaining the talent that will create cohesive and collaborative teams that drive innovation.
We recognize that we must all respect others in order to perform with excellence both in and outside of the workplace. We value the diversity of the people with whom we work and the contributions they make. We do not tolerate discrimination or harassment. We are committed to equal opportunity and to maintaining a workplace that is free from discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, gender, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions), national origin, ancestry, age, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, military or veteran status, marital status, a person’s request for family care leave, pregnancy disability leave, or leave for an employee’s own serious health condition, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
We expect our employees, suppliers, customers and other stakeholders to share a similar commitment to equal opportunity, diversity and inclusion. These values will help our employees use their full potentials at work to provide Innovation That Matters®.
Mercury is committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion internally and externally through a variety of programs and initiatives, including the following examples:
- In 2021, we formally recognized the Juneteenth holiday, continued to support the LGBTQ+ community through a variety of initiatives, adapted our logo to support Pride month, and expressed our support for the Asian-American community.
- We sponsored a predominantly female Brigham Young University (BYU) capstone team to provide opportunities for senior-level engineering students in Computer, Electrical, Manufacturing, and Mechanical Engineering to participate in real-world engineering challenges. You can listen to representatives from BYU and Mercury share their thoughts on gender parity in the workplace and how we can all work together to advance the roles of women in technology at this link.
- We were a gold sponsor at the Simmons Leadership Conference, which has inspiring keynote speakers offer candid stories about their experiences on the way to the top of their career paths. You can also listen to Mercury leaders discuss their experiences as women leaders with the Simmons Leadership Conference at this link.
Our Response to COVID-19
With COVID-19 impacting people and countries around the world, we are increasingly focused on “leading from the front,” communicating as frequently and openly as possible to help keep all of our stakeholders informed of the latest developments at Mercury.
We remain laser-focused on the four goals we established: to protect the health, safety and livelihoods of our people; to mitigate or reduce operational and financial risks to the business; to continue to deliver on our commitments to customers and shareholders; and to continue the mission-critical work Mercury does every day to support the ongoing security of our nation, our brave men and women in uniform, and the communities in which we all live.
We implemented a number of preventive measures and other resources to protect the safety and well-being of our extended Mercury family while the pandemic was deeply negatively affecting our communities, including:
- creation of a $1 million employee COVID-19 relief fund;
- weekly onsite COVID-19 testing at Mercury sites;
- 120 hours of COVID-19 sick leave for all team members;
- policies and procedures that ensure the safety of our onsite team members;
- caregiver resources (childcare and elder care), including a “Kid’s Corner”;
- memberships to the health and wellness apps Aaptiv and Headspace;
- Dr. David Zieg, our chief medical advisor, hosting regular webinars for all team members in English, in addition to Spanish and Vietnamese webinars hosted by other medical advisors on the same topics;
- creation of a Mercury COVID-19 dashboard that is updated for all of our sites; and
- regular internal surveys to gather team member feedback and concerns.
We also implemented a multi-phase return to workplace initiative, allowing us to return to work slowly, methodically and with extra vigilance.
To learn more about our response to COVID, please see our dedicated resource page.
Respect for Human Rights
We value and respect individual and cultural differences and are committed to providing an inclusive environment that is free from all forms of inappropriate behavior, including unlawful harassment and discrimination.
At Mercury, we are committed to ensuring that our team members, the people who work for our contractors, customers and suppliers, and individuals in the communities affected by our activities are treated with dignity and respect. Our employees and suppliers are required to abide by our Human Rights Policy and go through regular trainings or assessments to verify their compliance and understanding of the policy.
Human Rights
We respect human rights. We are committed to identifying, preventing and mitigating adverse human rights impacts arising from our business activities before or if they occur through due diligence and mitigation processes. We are committed to engaging with stakeholders in the communities where we operate to ensure that we are listening to, learning from and taking into account their views as we conduct our business.
Safe and Healthy Workplace
We provide a safe and healthy workplace that complies with applicable safety and health laws, regulations and internal requirements. We are dedicated to maintaining a productive workplace by minimizing the risk of accidents, injury and exposure to health risks. We are committed to engaging with our team members to continually improve health and safety in our workplaces, including the identification of hazards and remediation of health and safety issues. For further information, visit our Quality and Safety page.
Workplace Security
We are committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from violence, harassment, intimidation and other unsafe or disruptive conditions due to internal and external threats.
Forced Labor and Human Trafficking
We prohibit the use of all forms of forced labor, including prison labor, indentured labor, bonded labor, military labor, slave labor and any form of human trafficking. Please visit the following link to see our statement published pursuant to the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act.
Child Labor
We prohibit the hiring of individuals that are under 18 years of age for positions in which hazardous work is required.
Work Hours, Wages and Benefits
We compensate team members competitively relative to the industry and local labor market. We strive to operate in full compliance with applicable wage, work hours, overtime and benefits.
Employee Benefits
We offer a robust healthcare package and a full roster of team member benefits to maintain a culture of health.
Work-Life Integration
We understand employees have priorities beyond the workplace so we offer flexible schedules and a supportive work environment.
- Full-time employees accrue a generous vacation package starting with 15 days per year.
- On average, employees receive 11 paid holidays per calendar year.
Education and Training
We invest in our team members’ future. We encourage employees to take advantage of higher education and professional development opportunities.
- We reimburse employees 100% for tuition and lab fees for up to the IRS nontaxable limit.
- Through our online learning system, employees can take advantage of on-the-job training in a variety of disciplines. We encourage our team members to seek professional development training through industry organizations that develop skills or knowledge and contribute to employees' ability to perform his or her job. We also hold in-house Learn at Lunch seminars that focus on topics such as product updates and personal investing.
Healthcare Benefits
We are committed to providing our team members with a comprehensive set of healthcare benefits.
- Health Insurance. We offer a national preferred provider plan (PPO) and a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) with a companion health savings account (HSA) option.
- Dental Insurance. We offer a comprehensive dental insurance plan that pays 100% for preventive benefits with no deductible, including cleanings, X-rays and diagnostics, every six months.
- Vision Coverage. We offer vision coverage including access to care from eye doctors and quality, affordable eyewear.
- Health Care Reimbursement Accounts. A health reimbursement arrangement (HRA), sometimes called a health reimbursement account, is an IRS-approved, employer-funded health benefit used to reimburse employees for out-of-pocket medical expenses and personal health insurance premiums.
- Dependent Care Reimbursement. Pre-tax wages can be set aside to cover dependent care expenses. Eligible expenses include payments to a child care center, elder care, after-school care, or babysitting services in your home or someone else’s by a licensed provider.
Retirement and Investing
We are committed to providing team members with comprehensive opportunities to invest in the future.
- 401(k) Plan. Employees may contribute a percent of eligible earnings on a pre-tax, Roth or after-tax basis, which includes a company match.
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan. Employees who work 20 or more hours each week are eligible to participate in our stock purchase plan and may contribute a percentage of their gross wages (after taxes) into the plan. Enrollment is open each January and July.
Income Protection
We understand it is important to feel secure, especially when life events take you away from the office. As such we offer the following benefits:
- Short-Term Disability
- Long-Term Disability
- Worker's Compensation
- Maternity Leave
- Parental Leave
- Adoption Leave
- Jury Duty
- Military Leave
- Personal Leave
- Bereavement Leave
- Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
- State-Specific Small Necessities Leave Acts
Board and Executive Oversight
The Human Capital and Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors is responsible for reviewing and overseeing Mercury’s human capital management practices and related employment matters. In 2021, our Board approved amendments to the Committee’s charter that require the Committee to review our strategies, initiatives and programs with respect to human capital management, including our culture, talent recruitment, development and retention, employee engagement, workplace safety, and diversity, equity and inclusion.
The Committee periodically receives and reviews reports on workforce metrics and trends such as attrition rates and talent attraction, employee relations, workplace environment and safety and the policies and practices intended to promote diversity, equity and inclusion. The Committee periodically reviews and discusses with management the Company’s human capital management activities, including disclosure of these activities in public filings and reports, including the human capital management disclosure in the Form 10-K.
Our Executive Leadership Team oversees and implements our human capital management practices with a view towards demonstrating our commitment to good corporate citizenship and responsible business practices.