Here’s how some Dow industrial companies are observing the June 19 holiday

Read more: Closures on June 19: Are the banks and the post office open on June 20?

Read also: How should Juneteenth be observed by businesses and consumers? “We live in a capitalist society.

Some listed companies outside of the Dow 30, including Twitter TWTR,
+0.01%
and Block Inc. SQ,
-0.14%,
have announced over the past two years that they would make Juneteenth a paid holiday.

The share of companies observing holidays appears to be growing: 9% of more than 400 companies surveyed by human resources firm Mercer in early 2021 said they designated Juneteenth as a paid holiday, but preliminary survey results from the company this year found that 33% of the 200 responding employers so far had made it a paid holiday, and 11% were planning to do so next year.

MarketWatch has contacted Dow’s 30 industrial components to see how they will watch the holidays. Although closing the doors is difficult for many companies given the nature of their business, many will offer it as a paid leave to their employees, while others will take it a step further.

Here’s what the companies that responded said:

• Financial services and travel company American Express Co.
  AXP,
  +2.24%
  “American Express is proud to mark this year’s June 19 celebrations as a company holiday in the United States,” the company said in a statement. “To honor Juneteenth, we will be hosting events in partnership with our local Black Engagement Network (BEN) chapters and encouraging all of our colleagues to take the time to learn, celebrate and reflect on the significance of this day.”

• Caterpillar inc.
  CAT,
  -1.07%
  : The construction and mining equipment maker said it has planned a series of events and celebrations across the country for June 16-20, including virtual and local events with guest speakers, personal reflections, shared stories and more. “Caterpillar employees enjoy floating vacations and available time off to allow for the observation and celebration of events like Juneteenth that inspire and reflect the rich diversity of our workforce.”

• networking business Cisco Systems Inc.
  CSCO,
  -0.05%
  : Cisco recognizes Juneteenth as a paid holiday for its US employees.

• Bank and brokerage Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
  GS,
  -1.71%
  : Goldman Sachs will be closed on June 20.

• home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc.
  HD,
  -0.26%
  : Shops and offices will be open. “Due to the nature of our business, we are open most holidays (closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas),” the company said. “As we do for all federal holidays, our store associates receive overtime pay for all hours worked. We will have a series of events and celebrations this week for associates.

• Semiconductor manufacturer Intel Corp.
  INTC,
  -1.74%
  “Intel is proud to observe Juneteenth as an officially designated holiday for U.S. employees,” the company said. “Our US offices will be closed on June 20. Intel’s global manufacturing operations are operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and will remain open.”

• Technology Hardware Company International Business Machines Corp.
  IBM,
  -1.62%
  : IBM employees can choose to take Juneteenth as a paid holiday.

• The pharmaceutical, health services and consumer products company Merck & Co. Inc.
  MK,
  -1.55%
  : Merck said it will officially recognize the federal June 19 holiday on June 20. said in an emailed statement. “Our celebrations have already begun with a series of events organized by the League of Employees of African Descent (LEAD), a business resource group for employees within Merck.”

• Microsoft Corp.. MSFT,
  +0.67%
  : The software giant said it recognizes Juneteenth by inviting all employees to join in a day of exploration, learning and engagement on June 20, while offices remain open. “Our approach is to use this day to create time and space for employees to better understand critical topics related to race, ethnicity and racial injustice, rather than making it a paid holiday,” said Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Chief Diversity Officer. “Some employees may want to observe this day in the community and with their families and can take advantage of one of the company-provided floating holidays to do so,” McIntyre added.

• Giant of sports equipment and accessories Nike Inc.
  NKE,
  +0.16%
  : In observance of Juneteenth, Nike announced that it will close its US retail and distribution operations on June 19, followed by Converse corporate, manufacturing and distribution operations on June 20. Manufacturing operations in Missouri will be closed on June 19 and 20.

• Customer relationship management software publisher Salesforce Inc.
  RCMP,
  +2.39%
  “At Salesforce, Juneteenth is a floating corporate leave in the United States that can be used for rest, reflection or volunteering,” a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement. .

• health insurance company UnitedHealth Group Inc.
  A H,
  -0.87%
  “We will commemorate June 19 this year by engaging with our employees and helping to enhance their cultural knowledge through educational resources and June 19 activities,” the company said. “We offer flexible paid leave so employees can balance work with personal or family needs, including days of personal or cultural significance such as Juneteenth.”

• Pharmacy service company Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.
  WBA,
  -0.24%
  “Walgreens stores are open, as well as our offices, on June 20,” the company said.

MarketWatch did not receive responses from the other 17 Dow companies prior to the publication of this report, but the report will be updated with their comments as they come in.

Other Dow components are 3M Co. MMM,
-1.54%,
Amgen Inc.AMGN,
+1.49%,
Apple Inc.AAPL,
+0.89%,
Boeing Co. BA,
+1.24%,
Chevron Corp. CLC,
-4.93%,
Coca-Cola Co. KO,
+0.68%,
Dow Inc. DOW,
-2.10%,
Honeywell International Inc. HON,
-0.48%,
Johnson & Johnson JNJ,
-0.32%,
JPMorgan Chase & Co. JPM,
-1.09%,
McDonald’s Corp. MCD,
-0.72%,
Procter & Gamble Co. PG,
-0.71%,
Travelers Companies Inc.TRV,
-0.45%,
Verizon Communications Inc. VZ,
-0.57%,
Visa Inc.V,
-1.39%,
Walmart Inc.WMT,
-1.70%
and Walt Disney Co. DIS,
-0.12%

Meera Jagannathan contributed to this report.