New River Electrical logo on the side of a muddy, white box truck.

Statement from the Board of Directors

6005 Westerville Road
Westerville, Ohio 43081
P: (614)891-9132 | F: (614)794-0329
newriverelectrical.com

November 12, 2020

At New River Electrical, we are committed to providing a workplace where all of our employees feel safe, supported, and respected. As an employee-owned corporation, we will always put our people first. It has always been our policy to prohibit racism and discrimination in the workplace, and we continually work to uphold those standards.

In February 2020, it was brought to our attention that an individual on our team felt threatened by discriminatory words and actions from his teammates. Our peer discrimination policy, and after a thorough investigation of the situation, we came to an agreed-upon solution for all employees. We acted swiftly to ensure the employee felt comfortable in his work environment and disciplinary action was taken on those responsible.

On Wednesday, November 11, we learned that this individual, who was recently terminated for unrelated reasons, had publicly stated that he did not feel New River Electrical had responded appropriately. We were disheartened to hear that one of our own did not feel the support and respect we have pledged to provide to our employees.

As a people-first company, we are not blind to the challenges experienced all too often by people of color in our country. Nor are we blind to the fact that upholding our policies against racism and discrimination is necessary but difficult work. Our workforce is a brotherhood and when one of our own feels the pain of discrimination, we all feel that pain.

We want to assure our employees, their families, and our customers that we will continue to examine our policies and operating procedures to uphold these promises. We recognize that these individuals count on us to set the standard in our expertise, safety, and professionalism. We promise to do the same in fulfilling our role in eradicating racism in the workplace and in our communities.

Sincerely,

[Signature]

Chris Whitely, President/CEO