BGRS News

BGRS celebrates Juneteenth to pay tribute to the anniversary of the day in 1865 when the last group of enslaved black Americans were freed by Union troops.

Also referred to as Emancipation Day, President Joe Biden signed legislation on June 19, 2021, making Juneteenth Independence Day a federal holiday. BGRS will commemorate this important day in our nation’s history by closing our U.S.-based offices and making Monday, June 20, 2022 a paid company holiday.

Our diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are devoted to fostering a culture of belonging. We understand that in order to cultivate a true sense of connectivity within our company, we must learn and understand our colleagues’ history and the impact that it has on their lives. We are committed to the pursuit of continuous learning and to making educational materials and resources accessible to all our employees. We seek to amplify our understanding of different peoples and cultures and acknowledge that it is a lack of understanding which ultimately contributes to the perpetuation of systemic racism, inequality, and inhumanity in our society. We look forward to incorporating the history and lessons surrounding Juneteenth into our existing training modules and educational platforms.

“Juneteenth is about celebrating freedom, equity, and opportunity,” says Nancy Brickwood, SVP of Human Resources. “We won’t rest with our efforts by only providing a paid company holiday. We will continue to progress our DEI goals of nurturing inclusiveness and enabling advancement opportunities for employees in the workplace.”

BGRS’s recent partnership with Lion’s Club International Foundation (LCIF) is one example of this commitment. LCIF provides opportunities for our employees to create positive impact on a global scale by volunteering alongside other Lions to strengthen the communities in which they live and work. Our work with LCIF honors our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion by encouraging employees to implement or take part in locally tailored humanitarian projects and initiatives in the name of Unity.

BGRS is also pursuing new recruiting channels, which will assist in developing a more diverse talent pool from under-represented communities. We are delivering a four-part “Inclusive Training” series, required for all BGRS Leaders, which will provide leadership with the tools and resources necessary to support our company’s continuous pursuit of employee unification.

On this solemn occasion, and always, we remember: Juneteenth not only commemorates the past, it calls us to action today.

To learn more about Juneteenth, visit the official Juneteenth site.