The move stemmed from a recommendation from the company’s recently announced social justice task force.
Universal Music Group is making voting easier for its American employees by making Election Day 2020, November 3, a company-paid holiday. The company announced the news to employees in an internal memo on Friday (July 17) and obtained by Billboard.
“After all, the right to vote is the very foundation of democracy, perhaps freedom itself,” the note reads, noting that only 56% of eligible American voters voted in the 2016 presidential election. “As Americans, we have fought hard to win the right to vote. It was 91 years after the Constitution was enacted until people of color won the right, and even then, they were only men. 143 years passed after the Constitution until women won it. The right to vote was hardly won. “
The company’s holiday was an idea proposed to leadership by the UMG Task Force for Significant Change, which was launched in the wake of protests across the country following the May 25 assassination of George Floyd by agents of Minneapolis police. The memo notes that the upcoming Election Day holiday is an expansion of UMG’s pre-existing policy, which has already given American employees two hours of paid time off (three hours in Tennessee as mandated by state law) to vote. That same policy will continue to apply to all other elections, including primaries, special elections, and early voting.
In addition to the new policy, the memo provides information on a variety of election-related issues, including guidance on how to vote early, check voter registration status, request an absentee ballot, find a designated polling place. and verify how the pandemic will impact the electoral practices of each state. He notes that UMG and the Significant Change Task Force are partnering with various voting organizations and will provide more voting related information and activities in the coming weeks and months.
The Significant Change Task Force is co-chaired by the UMG Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Acting President and CEO of Def Jam. Jeff Harleston and CEO of Motown Records and CEO of Capitol Music Group Ethiopia Habtemariam, while 30 other UMG employees are serving as members. On June 4, the company unveiled a first course of action for the task force, which includes a $ 25 million “Change Fund” to be invested in six focus areas: charitable relief / donations, global change, internal / institutional, legislative / public policy, partners and programming / curatorship.
Although making Election Day a company holiday is not typical in the US, some companies, including Twitter and Uber, recently implemented the policy to facilitate employee voting. UMG appears to be the first major music company to do so in the US, where voter turnout is historically low compared to other developed nations.
According to an analysis by the Pew Research Center of data from the US Census Bureau, 14% of non-voters in the 2016 presidential election said they did not vote because they were too busy or had working hours and conflicting schoolchildren.
You can read the full UMG note below.
Today, Universal Music Group is announcing a new policy proposed by the Task Force for significant change, to help you exercise your right to vote in the upcoming US election.
After all, the right to vote is the very foundation of democracy, perhaps freedom itself. As Americans, we have fought hard to win the right to vote. It was 91 years after the Constitution was enacted until people of color won the right, and even then, they were only men. 143 years passed after the Constitution until women won it. The right to vote was hardly won.
In 2016, only 56% of eligible voters participated in the presidential election. As political observer Larry Sabato pointed out, “each election is determined by the people who appear.”
UMG Electoral Assistance Policies – UPDATED!
At UMG, we believe that all eligible citizens should vote. Our Policy Manual states that “UMG encourages all employees who are eligible to vote, register, and vote in federal, state, and local elections.”
This is what we are doing to help:
· Election Day (November 3) Full-day “vacation” company
· To help ensure employees’ voting ability, Election Day (November 3, 2020) will be a full-day (eight-hour) holiday for all UMG employees based in the United States.
· Other paid time off to vote
· This year’s Election Day holiday complements our old “free time to vote policy,” which can be used to vote in other elections, such as a primary or special election or early voting. This provides US-based employees who are eligible to vote in the US with up to two hours of paid time off to vote (up to three hours of paid time off for Tennessee voters, according to the state law of that country).
· This paid time must be taken at the beginning or end of your regular workday. You must notify your manager in reasonable advance that you will need to take time off. The information and the “Free Time to Vote Request Form” are available HERE.
· Useful information on how to vote
· There are many ways to vote in addition to the in-person vote on November 3. Given this year’s COVID-19 pandemic, many people vote by mail (also known as “absentee voting” or “voting from home”), where it is available. Others vote in person, but before November 3, this is known as “early voting.” Here is some useful background.
· Verify your registration!
· Eligible voters must register to vote in advance. If you moved, your record must be updated with your current address. IMPORTANT: Many states have been purging voter lists and eliminating voters, for a variety of reasons, but especially those people who might not have voted in recent elections. Please take a moment NOW to confirm that you are still registered, so that you are not prohibited from voting.
· Check your registration status HERE. AND FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO REGISTER, SEE HERE.
· Vote by Mail (“Vote by Mail”)
· Many states have “vote by mail” programs for those who cannot vote in person on November 3. IMPORTANT, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some states have expanded “vote by mail” eligibility. To see if you are eligible to vote by mail, check HERE.
· Early voting in person
· Some voters prefer to vote in person, but cannot vote on November 3 or simply want to avoid the long lines that can affect voting in person on that date. For those who prefer this “early voting,” see HERE for information on the rules and schedule in your state.
· Voting in person on November 3 – Check your polling place!
· If you are voting in person on November 3rd, be sure to check HERE for information on your polling place.
· Stay informed!
· The COVID-19 pandemic will likely affect many deadlines, polling places, and instructions. We will work to keep you informed, but you should also check HERE for information on how the pandemic is affecting your state’s elections.
UMG and the Task Force for Significant Change are partnering with various voting organizations. We will have much more information and activities in the coming weeks and months. Be sure to read the weekly “All Together Now” emails and other communications for updates.
For more information on the Significant Change Task Force and its latest activities, keep an eye out for more emails and check HERE.
If democracy is not in fact a spectator sport, let’s get off the bench and into the game.
