MGM Resorts International Releases its 10th Annual Diversity & Philanthropy Report

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A local minority-owned masonry contractor gets his first big break when he is awarded a contract with MGM Resorts, and his business grows by 700 percent.  MGM Resorts employee volunteers build a house from the ground up, and hand over the keys to an elated single mother and her children.  About 55,000 MGM Resorts employees on the Las Vegas Strip collectively donate more than 100,000 school supplies and distribute them to schoolteachers in at-need Clark County schools.  

These are just some of the powerful examples of how the MGM Resorts diversity and community relations initiatives resonate throughout the community, reaching far beyond the four walls of its resort properties.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) today released its 10th Annual Diversity & Philanthropy Report, demonstrating the Company's continued dedication to corporate responsibility and its leadership role in the industry. In addition to reflecting the Company's significant gains in human resources and diversity sales, the report highlights the Company's investments in local businesses and generous support of charities in its host communities.  

"This report is another chapter in the chronicle of our pursuit of excellence in our diversity and philanthropy initiatives," said Jim Murren, Chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts. "I am proud of what it reflects about the integrity, teamwork and devotion of our employees – reaching far beyond our Company operations to embrace the betterment of our communities."

One of the ways MGM Resorts works to better its communities is through its supplier diversity program, an integral component to the Diversity Initiative. The goal of the program is to ensure qualified minority-, women- and disadvantaged-business enterprises (MWDBEs) have the tools necessary, and the opportunities, to develop meaningful business relationships with the Company. The program is considered by many local businesses, such as Amazon Masonry Inc., to have played a large role in their success.

"MGM Resorts gave us our first big break," said Tim Brooks, owner of Amazon Masonry Inc., a certified Minority Business Enterprise and MGM Resorts masonry building supplier since 2003. "Since being in partnership with MGM Resorts, we've created more than 300 new jobs and have increased our revenue by 700 percent. Their supplier diversity program has allowed us to compete with larger companies and has helped us remain successful during this economic climate."

In 2010, MGM Resorts expended more than $120 million with MWDBE-certified suppliers of goods and services. Since 2001, the Company has expended a cumulative total of more than $1 billion with MWBDEs for goods and services, which is nearly 11 percent of the Company's total biddable expenditures for goods and services. The Company additionally spent more than $78 million last year with MWDBEs in construction and design, and cumulatively more than $1.5 billion in construction and design with MWBDEs since 2001.

Just as MGM Resorts invests in the community by partnering with local MWBDEs, the Company also helps by supporting local charities through its philanthropic efforts.

Each year, MGM Resorts donates a portion of its revenues and in-kind services to an array of critical community needs.  Last year, more than 340 charitable organizations received support through the Company's Corporate Charitable Giving Program.

"The vitality of our business is inextricably tied to the well-being of our communities," said Phyllis A. James, Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer.  "That's why every year we pursue an active agenda of serving and supporting local nonprofit organizations through philanthropy – to bring about positive change that not only improves lives today, but also preserves our infrastructure for future generations."

In addition to the Company's giving, employees donate funds to the community through the MGM Resorts Foundation, which collects and disburses employee donations to nonprofit charities designated by the employees. In 2010, employees raised more than $4.8 million to support nonprofits in the community. Since the Foundation's inception in 2002, employees have disbursed more than $44 million in employee donations to charities and causes in our communities and around the world.

Other highlights shared in the report include:

• Details of the Company's continued and accelerated commitment to the Diversity training program, which over the past decade has graduated more than 11,000 employee "Diversity Champions."
• Demographic information outlining the Company's continuing efforts to hire and promote qualified women and minorities, especially into management positions. Approximately half of the Company's management positions are held by women and 37 percent are held by minorities.
• Over the last 8 years (2002-2010), MGM Resorts' corporate giving to diverse organizations increased almost 400 percent and employee giving to diverse organizations increased 100 percent.

Keeping in step with the Company's environmental responsibility efforts, the report is printed with soy-based ink on Forest Stewardship Council certified paper and is available online.  

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) is one of the world's leading global hospitality companies, operating a peerless portfolio of destination resort brands, including Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay and The Mirage. In addition to its 51% interest in MGM China Holdings and the MGM Macau, the Company has significant holdings in gaming, hospitality and entertainment, owns and operates 15 properties located in Nevada, Mississippi and Michigan, and has 50% investments in three other properties in Nevada and Illinois. One of those investments is CityCenter, an unprecedented urban resort destination on the Las Vegas Strip featuring its centerpiece ARIA Resort & Casino. Leveraging MGM Resorts' unmatched amenities, the M life loyalty program delivers one-of-a-kind experiences, insider privileges and personalized rewards for guests at the Company's renowned properties nationwide. Through its hospitality management subsidiary, the Company holds a growing number of development and management agreements for casino and non-casino resort projects around the world. MGM Resorts International supports responsible gaming and has implemented the American Gaming Association's Code of Conduct for Responsible Gaming at its gaming properties. The Company has been honored with numerous awards and recognitions for its industry-leading Diversity Initiative, its community philanthropy programs and the Company's commitment to sustainable development and operations. For more information about MGM Resorts International, visit the Company's website at www.mgmresorts.com.

Statements in this release which are not historical facts are "forward looking" statements and "safe harbor statements" Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and/or uncertainties, including risks and/or uncertainties as described in the company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE MGM Resorts International