VF Corporation, makers of Timberland and Vans among other brands, has been named one of America’s Most Just Companies, according to Forbes and JUST Capital, a nonprofit that ranks the U.S.’s largest publicly traded corporations on the issues Americans care about most. The second annual Just 100 ranking compares America’s companies head-to-head, based on the priorities of the American people.
“VF is honored to be recognized as one of America’s Most Just Companies,” states Steve Rendle, VF’s Chairman, President and CEO. “However, recognition is never our end goal. As one of the world’s largest apparel and footwear companies, we clearly understand our responsibility to operate with the highest environmental, social and ethical standards to ensure that we lead by example and serve as a catalyst for continual improvements across our global industry. VF is and will always remain committed to actions that lessen our impact on the planet and enhance the lives of people worldwide.”
VF outperformed its peers on the criteria deemed to be most important, including worker pay and treatment, job creation, healthy products and communities, environmental impact and other key areas. The rankings are based on one of the most comprehensive surveys ever conducted on public attitudes towards corporate behavior, involving 10,000 American respondents in 2017 and more than 72,000 over the past three years. The rankings encompass the 1,000 largest publicly-traded companies in the U.S.
“Business can and should be a unifying force for good in America today, but what it needs is a new North Star,” says Martin Whittaker, CEO of JUST Capital. “That is what these rankings represent. By trusting in the American people to define what really matters when it comes to measuring business performance, we think we can help breathe life into the vision of a more just economy that better serves the broader best interests of society.”
“The second annual Just 100 list serves as a report card for corporate America, providing unbiased data about how corporations are performing on the issues Americans care most about,” says Forbes editor Randall Lane. “At a time when corporate America, as a whole, faces low public approval, the companies in the Just 100 provide an example for their peers on how to win back the trust of the American people.”
The complete 2017 JUST 100 list is available here.
