Fair Money & Economic Opportunity

Waters Corporation is a specialty measurement company that designs, manufactures, sells, and services analytical instruments. It is not a financial institution and does not offer lending, deposit, or other financial services to consumers. Therefore, all KPIs related to financial products, services, and their associated metrics are not applicable to the company's operations. The provided evidence pertains to STEM education

, workplace equality , and diversity initiatives , which do not fall under the scope of 'Fair Money & Economic Opportunity'.

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

No specific quantitative data was found in the provided articles for any of the KPIs under Fair Pay & Worker Respect. While articles mentioned initiatives such as conducting global pulse surveys, enhancing employee benefits, or having health and safety programs, they did not provide specific metrics like living wage coverage, CEO to median pay ratio, collective bargaining share, safety incident rates, pay equity ratios, worker engagement scores, turnover rates, insecure contract share, or health insurance coverage percentages. A single labor violation was noted in 2025, involving an $800,000 settlement for mismanaging an employee retirement plan

, but this did not align with the 'minor infractions' specified in the rubric's quantitative thresholds for a single incident, leading to its omission.

Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing

Waters Corporation's 2023 Conflict Minerals Report indicated that no suppliers reported sourcing tin, tungsten, tantalum, or gold from mines controlled by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or adjoining countries.

This finding resulted from a due diligence program that included a Supplier Environmental and Social Responsibility Code of Conduct and engagement with 5,722 suppliers, achieving a 69% response rate.

Honest & Fair Business

Waters Corporation maintains a Global Complaint Reporting Policy, which includes the Waters Ethics Helpline, an anonymous reporting tool operated confidentially by a third-party vendor.

The company has a strict policy against retaliation for good-faith reporters. Its comprehensive policies, including a Global Code of Business Conduct & Ethics and a Global Anti-Bribery & Anti-Corruption Compliance Policy, explicitly prohibit bribery and corruption, broadly defining 'anything of value.' The company commits to complying with import and export control laws and refrains from business with sanctioned entities. Directors are expected to avoid conflicts of interest. , and the Board has determined that all directors, except the President and CEO, are independent under NYSE criteria. The Audit & Finance Committee oversees the independent registered public accounting firm and pre-approved 100% of audit and other related fees. The company's ethics program is periodically evaluated by external experts. Waters Corporation adopted a mandatory clawback policy in 2023 and amended its discretionary recoupment policy for executive cash incentive compensation. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee oversees ESG policies, and the company aligns its reporting with GRI and SASB frameworks.

Kind to Animals

Waters Corporation is a specialty measurement company that designs, manufactures, sells, and services analytical instruments.

The company's products are used by the meat and dairy industries for testing pathogens and veterinary drug residues , , but Waters itself does not engage in animal agriculture operations or sourcing.

No War, No Weapons

Waters Corporation engages in contracts with military agencies, including the Naval Research Laboratory, Naval Air Warfare Center, and Army's Chemical Biological Center.

These contracts, totaling approximately $902.7k across 2022-2024, are for non-lethal equipment, services, analytical instruments, and test and measurement supplies. , , The company's core business is analytical instruments, and its engagements with military entities are explicitly for non-lethal support, indicating no direct arms revenue or exposure to any weapons, controversial or otherwise. ,

Planet-Friendly Business

Waters Corporation's new near-term and long-term science-based emission reduction targets were validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in 2025.

The company achieved its 2025 goal of reducing Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 35% in 2023, two years ahead of schedule. In 2022, 90% of waste was diverted from landfills. The company sourced 71% of its electricity from renewable and clean energy sources. Waters continues to report in alignment with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

Respect for Cultures & Communities

Waters Corporation's operations, primarily in diagnostics and research, are described as having a neutral cultural impact.

The company's ESG commitments focus on environmental sustainability and social responsibility but do not explicitly address community-driven cultural preservation. Consequently, there are no reported cultural appropriation incidents, and no specific protocols for cultural impact assessment or cultural incident response are noted as applicable. Similarly, there is no evidence of formal partnerships with indigenous or local community groups, specific investment in cultural preservation, or participation in FPIC processes, aligning with a business model where these are not directly applicable. The company's charitable giving does not have a specific cultural heritage focus.

Safe & Smart Tech

No recent significant public data breaches or controversies have been found for Waters Corporation.

The company's information security risk management framework is structured according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework and includes multiple layers of security controls. In 2023, Waters Corporation allocated $7.6 million to enhance its cybersecurity infrastructure, which represents approximately 0.22% of its total revenue. The company's Privacy Policy outlines its commitment to data protection through detailed data collection and usage practices, emphasizing transparency. Its AI Disclaimer highlights a commitment to ethical AI practices and transparency, acknowledging the experimental nature of AI services. The company appears to adhere to standard industry practices and norms regarding regulatory compliance, and no documented incidents of unauthorized data use have been found.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

Waters Corporation achieved a 90% waste diversion rate from landfills in 2022.

The company has set ambitious waste reduction targets, aiming for a 50% decrease in landfill waste by 2025 from a 2019 baseline, which was achieved early, and a goal of zero waste to landfill by 2030. Multiple waste reduction initiatives are in place, including a 50% decrease in landfill waste from a 2019 baseline, an 18% decrease in non-recycled waste intensity from 2020 to 2021, and an 8.5% reduction in non-hazardous waste since 2016. New on-site hazardous waste treatment capabilities at the Taunton, Massachusetts facility will reduce offsite shipments of organic and aqueous waste by 50%. The company has had no waste disposal violations in the past three years. Material efficiency is strong, with ACQUITY UPLC instruments using approximately 80% less solvent and Xevo TQ Absolute Mass Spectrometer using half the nitrogen gas of comparable instruments. Packaging efficiency is also improving, with column box sizes reduced by 50%. Circular design principles are promoted through instrument take-back programs and the refurbishment and reuse of field-serviceable spare parts. Waters provides customers with local contacts to support the responsible handling and destruction of end-of-life instruments.