SAN DIEGO, June 12, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) has honored 127 employees whose contributions were instrumental in helping the company achieve supplier and employee diversity goals in 2005.
At its annual Diversity Champions awards celebration, June 9, 2006, in San Diego, Sempra Energy recognized both employees and diverse business suppliers.
"Diversity is an important part of who we are at Sempra Energy, reflecting the communities we serve," said G. Joyce Rowland, senior vice president of human resources for Sempra Energy. "We're proud of the extraordinary dedication and leadership shown by our Diversity Champions award winners."
Currently, 51 percent of Sempra Energy's workforce and 30 percent of its managers are African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics and Native Americans.
Last year, Sempra Energy spent a record $215 million with about 272 verified Diverse Business Enterprises (DBE) owned by women, minorities and service-disabled veterans.
"Our Diversity Champions are committed to making the most of opportunities by working with a wide range of suppliers and helping those diverse suppliers grow and expand their businesses," said Margot Kyd, vice president of supply management and fleet services for Sempra Energy subsidiaries San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas).
"The Sempra Energy companies have gone above and beyond what I ever could have anticipated any customer doing in working with us," said Leonard Ortiz, president of NovaCoat Inc., a general contractor for SDG&E and SoCalGas. "They have nominated us for industry awards and even provided us the opportunity to participate in the Management Development Program for Entrepreneurs at University of California Los Angeles's Anderson School of Management, which was invaluable to growing our businesses. Sempra Energy's supplier diversity program is a model for other companies to follow."
DiversityInc magazine recently ranked Sempra Energy No. 1 in supplier diversity and No. 19 for overall diversity on the publication's annual list of "Top 50 Companies for Diversity." Sempra Energy also has received numerous other awards and honors for its commitment to diversity, including the U.S. Department of Labor, state and local chambers of commerce, as well as a top-five ranking on Fortune magazine's list of "America's 50 Companies for Minorities," for seven consecutive years.
For more information on Sempra Energy's diversity programs or becoming a DBE supplier, please visit www.sempra.com/diversity.htm.
Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2005 revenues of $11.7 billion. The Sempra Energy companies' 14,000 employees serve more than 29 million consumers in the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico, South America and Asia.