May 24--FedEx Corp. and employees combined to donate $46 million in cash and in-kind services worldwide in 2012, and more than 16,500 employees volunteered for community service projects.
The company's fifth annual Global Citizenship Report, issued Thursday, said FedEx donated $1.5 million and shipped 2,000 tons of relief aid, including 23,000 meals, to help victims of Superstorm Sandy last October.
The charitable efforts were outlined in a report that also described successes on fuel efficiency and clean air, workplace diversity and economic impact.
The company is Greater Memphis' largest private employer with 30,000 workers, although the workforce is due to shrink by an unknown number when an initial wave of longtime employees retires under a voluntary buyout program in June.
The report said FedEx's cargo hub at Memphis International Airport pumps more than $27 billion a year into the area economy, helping support more than 208,000 jobs.
It was unclear how the charity total stacked up to giving in previous years because it was stated as a dollar amount for the first time and included employee contributions.
The 2011 Citizenship Report said donations of cash and shipping totaled 1.24 percent of pretax profits, but that didn't include employee contributions.
The company reserves cargo space and funding each year for up to 4 million pounds or 2,000 tons of disaster relief supplies and equipment for groups including American Red Cross, Direct Relief, Heart to Heart International and The Salvation Army. It has delivered 50 million pounds of relief supplies around the world in the past decade.
The report touted a milestone, announced in March, of a 20 percent gain in the vehicle fleet fuel efficiency, compared to 2005, and set a new target of 30 percent by 2020. It previously reset its goal to 30 percent for reducing aircraft emissions by 2020.
FedEx said its environmental initiatives, dubbed EarthSmart, include a boost in solar-powered facilities to nine in the U.S. and Europe, and continuation of aircraft fleet modernization that has brought in 23 Boeing 777s to serve 25 cities and is on track to have 43 777s in service a decade from now. FedEx Express also will introduce Boeing 767s this fall.
The company said 44 percent of its U.S. workforce is minority, and 27 percent of employees globally are women, including 22 percent of managers.
Copyright 2013 - The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, Tenn.
