T HE CO RPOR AT E E X A M I N E R SP OT LIGHT S
Delta Air Lines
In each issue of the Corporate Examiner, ICCR features a corporation and its work to advance ESG issues.
Following is a conversation with Letty Ashworth, General Manager of Global Diversity for Delta Air Lines.
In 2010, ICCR first asked Delta to consider
signing the ECPAT tourism code of
conduct, which seeks to protect children
from sexual exploitation. Within a year, it
had agreed to do so - can you tell us what
factors led to this swift decision, and how
signing has impacted Delta’s day-to-day
operations?
Letty: After being asked to support
ECPAT, Delta Air Lines CEO Richard
Anderson quickly concluded that as a global
carrier, using Delta’s people, infrastructure,
and other resources to help combat human
and child trafficking, was “the morally right
thing to do”. As part of this commitment,
Mr. Anderson signed the ECPAT Code of
Conduct, Delta adopted a policy against
human rights abuses that condemns all
forms of human rights abuses, and the
company began taking steps to raise
awareness among employees and business
partners about the harms of human and
child trafficking.
As the first major airline to sign the code,
Delta had to develop a human trafficking
awareness training program which would
teach its employees how to identify and
report trafficking activities. Can you talk a
bit about how you designed and manage it where you looked for models, who conducts
it, how often the program is updated, and
the metrics you use to measure success?
Letty: Shortly after Delta began working
on creating its own corporate Human
Trafficking Awareness Training, the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
and the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP)
announced the creation of the Blue Lighting
Initiative, through which CBP would make
training available to commercial airlines,
to help airline employees identify and
report potential trafficking activity. Earlier
Letty Ashworth is a key leader in Delta’s global strategy to further develop an efficient, effective, and diverse
workforce that reflects the rapidly changing demographics of an increasingly interconnected world. She works closely
with various company business units, including finance, commercial and supply chain, in their efforts to recruit diverse
talent. Those recruiting efforts include the company’s major commitment to support veterans and advocate on behalf
of issues that are important to Delta employees and their families living with disabilities.
Letty also has oversight of the company’s African American, Women’s, Asia Pacific, Gay/Lesbian, and Hispanic and
Latin America employee networks. In addition, she administers Delta’s mentoring program, RISE (Realizing Individual
Standards of Excellence) which operates throughout the company. As a result of the program’s success, an Asia
satellite program was launched with plans to expand to other markets across the world.
As part of Delta’s Force for Global Good, Letty has most recently worked on Habitat for Humanity builds in
Leogane, Haiti (a special mission with the Carter Foundation), El Monte, Chile and Shanghai, China. She also works
Letty Ashworth, General
Manager of Global Diversity
for Delta Air Lines.
with numerous Civil Rights Organizations throughout the Delta hubs. Letty currently serves as a Board member for the
YWCA of Atlanta and GBCAT (Global Business Coalition Against Human Trafficking). She is a graduate of Spelman
College in Atlanta, GA and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.
THE CORPORATE EXAMINER • 17
this year, Delta became a Blue Lightning
member, and has worked with CBP to
finalize computer based Blue Lightning
Training that is customized for Delta’s
customer-facing airport employees.
How difficult is it to manage trafficking
and other human rights risks throughout
your supply chain and what are your plans
for addressing them?
Letty: Delta Air Lines currently has in a
place a Supplier Code of Conduct. This
Code of Conduct has been updated to
include specific language condemning the
sexual exploitation of children. Certain
of Delta’s supplier contracts now also
include provisions requiring the common
repudiation of child and human trafficking
abuses. Delta will continue to its efforts to
include similar provisions in new contracts,
or contracts that are being renewed, with
appropriate suppliers.
also plans to create a dedicated portal on
the company’s intranet, to update employees
about these efforts.
How do you see the leadership role you’ve
taken influencing how other companies in
your industry manage human rights risks?
Letty: Delta continues to participate in
community and business outreach and
networking events to develop and share
best practices for raising awareness and
combating child and human trafficking.
What advice might you offer other
companies in the travel industry that are
considering - or have been asked - to sign the
ECPAT code?
Letty: Companies who are considering
signing on the ECPAT should consider
the important impact their company and
employees can have in helping to raise
awareness about the harms of child and
human trafficking.
ECPAT’S CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN FROM
SEXUAL EXPLOITATION IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM
Child sex tourism is the practice of foreigners sexually exploiting children in another country.
What awareness raising programs does
Delta have in place to educate its employees
and its customers about the risks of human
trafficking? Are there any obstacles?
Each year more than two million children are exploited in the global commercial sex trade,
Letty: As part of Delta’s ongoing
commitment to educate its employees
about the need to combat child and human
trafficking, Delta has widely communicated
its role as the first major airline to sign
the ECPAT tourism code of conduct
and as one of the first airlines to join the
Blue Lightning Initiative. As part of the
company’s Speaker Series for employees,
Delta hosted a writer and human rights
activist who shared her experience as a
victim and survivor of human trafficking.
Delta has also included information about
ECPAT on delta.com, to raise awareness
among employees and customers. Delta
This tool consists of the following six criteria, which members of the tourism industry must
18 • THE CORPORATE EXAMINER
some as young as five years old. The ECPAT Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct is
a voluntary set of business principles that travel and tourism companies can implement to
prevent the trafficking of children and child sex tourism.
adhere to once they join The Code:
1. Establish a policy and procedures against sexual exploitation of children;
2. Train employees in children’s rights, the prevention of sexual exploitation and how to
report suspected cases;
3. Include a clause in contracts through the value chain stating a common repudiation and
zero tolerance policy of sexual exploitation of children;
4. Provide information to travelers on children’s rights, the prevention of sexual exploitation
of children and how to report suspected cases;
5. Support, collaborate and engage stakeholders in the prevention of sexual exploitation of
children; and
6. Report annually on their implementation of Code-related activities.