Johnston Architects endeavors to create a work environment where equity and employee happiness are an essential part of the way we work. To that end, we became a JUST organization in 2018.
Diversity & Inclusion - Diversity and inclusion are essential components of the culture at Johnston Architects. We are committed to creating and maintaining an office whose employees reflect the ethnic, racial, and gender makeup of our community. As a testament of our commitment, in 2020, we voluntarily signed the National Organization of Minority Architect’s (NOMA) call-to-action pledge. The pledge “lays the foundation for the reconstruction of a truly unified and anti-racist architectural, engineering, construction, and design community.” We strive to create a safe, welcoming, supportive, and collaborative environment for all our employees.
JA has been 50% women-owned from its inception. Currently, over 60% of our employees at JA are women-identifying and over 60% of our leadership team, including partners, are also women-identifying.
Equity - At JA we believe in providing our employees a wage appropriate for the times, which is why we provide an annual cost of living wage and ensure everyone is paid a living wage. We also provide flexible employment, allow our employees the opportunity to join unions, and place value in what individuals do at every level of the organization by paying them fairly.
Stewardship - Supporting our community is a priority and we are committed to giving back to it, which is why in 2016 JA established a Social Responsibility committee, a voluntary group of JA employees to research and organize volunteer opportunities and charitable initiatives for the firm to participate in. Through volunteering, fundraising, and donating, JA not only contributes expertise, but gains connection to socially-responsible causes that help inform us as designers.
Through our work, JA aims to address issues for a sustainable future and the social, economic, and environmental well-being of the communities we serve. These issues include but are not limited to: reduced energy consumption, renewable energy adoption, utilization of local materials, development of sustainable sites, specification of low-flow water fixtures, and access to public transportation when available.
Employee Benefits - Employee health is directly connected to company health, so we provide comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance plans for our employees. We provide up to 12 weeks of paid new parent and/or family & medical leave, and new parents have the option to use personal paid time off after 12 weeks, up to a maximum of 26 weeks of consecutive paid leave. We also value continued education and community outreach, which is why we require a prerequisite of a minimum of four community outreach hours before providing employees with a $500 annual stipend for education.
