CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

DE&I Center

New York Life’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Center for Awareness and Advocacy (DE&I Center) promotes equal employment opportunity and workforce diversity, strengthens diverse procurement practices, engages in community outreach, and works to support a culture that continuously evolves by actively welcoming and respecting different backgrounds and points of view for the benefit of New York Life and its employees.

In 2016, the DE&I Center launched the Coming Together Series, with the inaugural session bringing together employees to engage in a first-time, company-sponsored discussion on race relations. Since then, we’ve built a comprehensive program that includes ongoing companywide discussions featuring timely topics, guest speakers, and the sponsorship of related research projects. The series has been instrumental in shaping our culture of inclusion.

Since launching the series, there have been over 40 courageous conversations exploring topics intersecting race and their communities. Through these sessions, employees learn how to approach and discuss tough social issues to better understand and connect with each other, leading to a more inclusive workplace. Examples of such sessions include COVID-19, Fear & Bias, Justice in Action, Hate Crimes, and Coming Out in Diverse Communities.

Employee Resource Groups

New York Life proudly sponsors seven Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). Created by and for employees who represent unique cultures, experiences, and backgrounds, these groups coordinate numerous workshops, seminars, and special events that make a real and lasting difference across the organization. Today there are more than 70 ERG chapters and sub-groups, and each year nearly two-thirds of all employees attend at least one of the more than 100 programs they offer.

New York Life’s Black ERG is known as the Black Organization for Leadership and Development, or BOLD. BOLD’s mission is to build a foundation of engagement and encouragement for New York Life employees of African descent and their colleagues which serves as a catalyst for individual growth and empowerment while reinforcing New York Life's mission and values. 

BOLD’s signature program, NYL 360, empowers its membership through educational programming about New York Life, our leaders, our strategies, and career development opportunities. As part of the NYL 360 program, BOLD collaborated with the Agency business to create a wealth management and financial literacy program called Planning BOLDly Wealth Building Series. This program won external recognition, landing a Top 10 spot on Profiles in Diversity Journal’s Annual Innovations in Diversity Award List in 2019 — an award that recognizes organizations that have developed innovative solutions in the areas of workforce diversity, inclusion, and human equity.