HMTX Industries announced that it has received a renewed JUST 2.0 Social Justice Label for its U.S. employees and operations. This follows two years after the company became the first manufacturer in the world to achieve the JUST 2.0 label, and HMTX said it remains the only major flooring manufacturer with this achievement. Improved scores were realized in nine areas: Training/Education, Volunteering, Family/Medical Leave, Retirement Provision, Full-Time Employment, Gender Diversity, Gender Pay Equity, Well-Being, and Local Communities.

“The purpose of JUST is not merely to take stock of where you are, but to also help you determine where you need to go and how you can get there,” said HMTX Director of Sustainability and Impact Arthur Clarke. “We began working on enhancements to our programs and policies when we received the initial JUST label in 2020 for HMTX’s domestic employees and operations. Since then, we’ve introduced a tuition assistance plan and a volunteer time-off program, as well as offering qualifying employees up to six weeks of additional paid time-off for mothers and fathers to bond with an adoptive or biological child. Those are just several of the advances that we’ve made regarding social justice and equity - and we’re not stopping there.”

Maria Stolfi, HMTX’s chief people officer explained “In addition to the significant gains we’ve made in Employee Benefits and Training, we have integrated JUST’s high standards into our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Strategy. While we are very proud of our strong female leadership representation and pay equity, we will remain keenly focused on increasing Ethnic Diversity & Inclusion going forward. We’re very thankful to the entire HMTX family who has worked hard to maintain our high employee engagement levels throughout these challenging times.”

Along with paid time-off for maternity leave and paternity leave, the Tuition Assistance Plan (TAP) and the Volunteer Time-Off (VTO) Program were also launched on April 1, 2022. Full-time and part-time employees who meet the TAP qualifications are eligible to receive up to $5,250 and $2,625 per calendar year, respectively, for tuition assistance payments. The program is available to employees who are pursuing an approved degree, GED, or certification program. The courses do not have to be directly job-related, except master’s level courses or degrees. By offering this program, HMTX is enabling its employees to further advance their knowledge, skills, and careers.

Through the VTO Program, full-time and part-time employees who meet the program’s qualifications are eligible to receive up to 16 hours of paid time-off per calendar year to volunteer for nonprofit organizations that meet IRS 501(c)(3) guidelines. This allows employees the opportunity to partake in such activities as building a house for Habitat for Humanity, cleaning up a local beach, park or trail, or volunteering at a homeless shelter. By offering this program, HMTX is encouraging its employees to lend their time to efforts that positively impact the quality of life within the communities in which they live and work.

“One of my most memorable days at HMTX was showing our CEO Harlan Stone our first JUST label and explaining that while it wasn’t perfect, it was a baseline," said HMTX Chief Sustainability and Impact Officer, Rochelle Routman. "We had the option of not finalizing or publishing the label and quietly working to improve our scores – or - being fully transparent on the status at that time. The decision was made to publish that first label and tell the world about this major step in the flooring industry that we had undertaken, and here we are now with our renewed label, and what an improvement!”