Comcast is committed to diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace and its digital equity programs
• Project UP is Comcast's 10-year, $1 billion commitment to making digital equity a reality.
Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEI&B) are part of Comcast's DNA. These principles play a crucial role in everything from the company's workplace environment and the content on its Xfinity video platforms to its supplier diversity programs and community-focused digital equity initiatives.
Comcast believes everyone should have unlimited possibilities. That's why in 2021 the company launched Project UP, a 10-year, $1 billion commitment to help make digital equity a reality in the communities the company serves. Digital equity equals broadband internet access plus a computer plus digital skills (regardless of where you live or how much money you have).
• Internet Essentials, Comcast's core digital equity program, has helped 1.9 million Illinoisans connect to the Internet at home since 2011.
Internet Essentials is the nation's largest broadband adoption program. It provides low-cost Internet service to eligible income-constrained households with students of all ages - from kindergarten to college - seniors, veterans and people with disabilities, as well as public housing residents. Internet Essentials has connected more than 10 million people nationally and 1.9 million in Illinois to the Internet at home since it launched in 2011. In addition, Comcast participates in the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provides eligible households up to $30 a month toward their Internet and/or mobile bills. ACP can cover the full cost of Internet Essentials, making it free!
• Comcast created Lift Zones to fill digital gaps.
Not everyone can get access to Internet service at home. Some people don't have stable housing. Others live in environments that aren't conducive to studying or working. Lift Zones are for them. Lift Zones are safe places at community organizations where school children can get online for remote learning and to do homework, and adults can get online to access government, healthcare and other services, search for jobs and build digital skills. Comcast has built more than 1,300 Lift Zones across the country, including more than 90 in the region.
• Comcast and its community partners have largely addressed Internet access in the Chicago-area communities it serves. Now, the company is focusing on digital skill building.
Unesco defines digital skills as "a range of abilities to use digital devices, communication applications and networks to access and manage information." A recent National Skills Coalition (NSC) report found that 90 percent of Illinois jobs require digital skills. But one-third of U.S. workers don't have digital skills, creating a significant digital skills divide. The report also found that public investments in closing the digital skill divide can benefit workers, businesses and the economy at large.
Workers who qualify for jobs that require even one digital skill can earn on average 23 percent more than workers who don't qualify for jobs that require a digital skill. Moving from a job that requires no digital skills to one that requires at least three can increase pay by an average of 45 percent.
Increased earnings could generate more state and federal tax revenue, ranging from $1,363 to $2,879 in additional tax revenue per household per year, depending on the household size and composition. Turnover costs can be averted or delayed for businesses by ensuring that workers have upskilling opportunities.
DEI&B programs can change lives. They can make workforces stronger, more cohesive and more productive. And they can drive economic growth.
DEI&B is part of Comcast's DNA, and the company is proud to have helped millions of people in diverse communities in the Chicago area and across the nation cross the digital divide.
• Jack Segal is Regional Vice President of Communications at Comcast.