Better Health for All

The company's core business includes distributing safety products like PPE, hand protection, and hearing protection, and partswashing solutions that minimize respiratory risks and skin irritation.

The acquisition of Emergent Safety Supply expanded Lawson's safety product offering by over four times, indicating a strategic focus on products that deliver substantial health benefits by preventing injury and illness. The company has no products with significant negative health impacts. However, traditional solvent-based washers, which the company's Torrent solutions aim to replace, create respiratory risks, skin irritation, and fire hazards, indicating limited health-harming externalities from some products in the market. The company does not offer health-related products or services requiring accessibility considerations, nor does its business model involve serving vulnerable populations with health needs. The company does not hold healthcare-related patents, produce food/nutritional products, or engage in clinical trials or health education. In February 2022, the company experienced a cyber incident potentially involving unauthorized access to protected health information, leading to a class action lawsuit in April 2023, which was settled in April 2025. The company offers an Employee Assistance Program for alcohol or drug-related problems and requires employees to work free from substance influence, reserving the right to test for reasonable suspicion. These are basic provisions for employee well-being, not comprehensive mental health or addiction mitigation programs for external populations.

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

Approximately 5.14% of the company's total workforce is covered by collective bargaining agreements, derived from 13% of the Lawson subsidiary's 1,740 employees being covered as of December 31, 2024, out of a total workforce of 4,400.

For health insurance, TestEquity's selling, general, and administrative expenses increased by $5.5 million due to higher expenses for health insurance, among other items, but this does not provide a percentage of the workforce covered. The company's Supplier Code of Conduct outlines expectations for its suppliers, including prohibitions against discrimination, harassment, forced labor, human trafficking, slavery, and child labor, and requires compliance with applicable laws on working hours, wages, benefits, freedom of association, collective bargaining, and safe working environments. A putative class action lawsuit was filed against the company in April 2023 related to a cyber incident, seeking monetary damages and injunctive relief. The company also reported that approximately 35-45% of its employees have employer health coverage, as stated in a 2023 filing.

Honest & Fair Business

Sustainalytics data from July 2025 indicates the company has a 'None' controversy level.

No specific regulatory actions, violations, fines, or compliance issues have been mentioned in the past three years. A policy exists requiring employees to contact General Counsel if material non-public information is improperly disclosed.

Kind to Animals

The company is listed among those with a "No Animal Exploitation" policy.

This indicates a comprehensive stance against animal exploitation, including animal testing, across all product categories.

No War, No Weapons

The provided articles, including financial reports specific to Distribution Solutions Group (DSGR.US), explicitly state that information regarding arms contracts, dual-use technology, sales to embargoed regimes, peacebuilding investment, conflict divestment policy, board oversight of defense, export end-user certificates, lobbying on arms control, procurement humanitarian compliance, human rights due diligence frequency, Arms Trade Treaty compliance, AI military safeguards, UN Guiding Principles alignment, dual-use screening, surveillance transparency, ethical red lines, zero exposure to controversial weapons, war risk audits, annual conflict partner reviews, defense divestment, conflict minerals, peace tech investment, conflict zone procurement, and ethical red lines compliance rate is not applicable or not mentioned for DSGR.US.

Other articles discuss general industry trends or other companies (Menzies Distribution, RS Group), and therefore do not provide scorable evidence for DSGR.US. Consequently, no KPIs can be scored based on the provided evidence.

Planet-Friendly Business

The company reported total Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions of 18,056,470 tCO2e in 2023, with full Scope 1, 2, and 3 data published.

Scope 1 and 2 emissions saw a 15.5% year-over-year reduction from 2022 to 2023. The company has a net-zero target for Scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions by 2050 and a carbon-neutral target for Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 2032. However, it has not yet validated science-based targets, with a review of the SBTi standard intended for late 2024. Only 1.2% of operational energy consumption was sourced from renewables in 2023. The waste diversion rate for non-hazardous and hazardous waste was 80.7% in 2023. The company reported no material non-compliance with environmental laws and regulations in 2023, though it is undertaking remediation at a facility in Decatur, Alabama, with $0.1 million accrued for monitoring costs as of December 31, 2023. The company assesses and manages climate risks using the TCFD framework but only plans to consider the applicability of climate-related scenario analyses in the future. There is no data on the percentage of water withdrawn from water-stressed basins.

Respect for Cultures & Communities

No specific, concrete, or quantitative data points were found in the provided articles to assess Distribution Solutions Group, Inc. against the ethical value of 'Respect for Cultures & Communities'. The articles primarily consist of financial reports, general policy statements, or explicitly state the absence of data for the relevant metrics. For instance, while a Social and Environmental Responsibility Policy exists,

no evidence of its implementation or specific outcomes related to community engagement, cultural preservation, or local impact was provided. Information regarding supplier relationships did not specify partnerships with indigenous or local community groups, nor did it provide procurement spending percentages for local suppliers. Therefore, no KPIs can be scored based on the available evidence.

Safe & Smart Tech

In February 2022, Lawson, a subsidiary, experienced a cyber incident potentially involving unlawful access to personal identifiable information and protected health information, leading to a class action lawsuit filed in April 2023.

The company implemented security improvements post-incident. DSG is ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certified and self-certified to EU-U.S. and Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Frameworks. The company requires compulsory cybersecurity training for employees, including handling sensitive data, and routinely assesses its effectiveness. However, it does not use vulnerability scanning and critical vulnerabilities are patched within 30-45 days on average. DSG states compliance with various privacy regulations like CalOPPA, COPPA, and GDPR, but also notes the evolving and uncertain interpretation of these laws. Users can change or remove personal information by emailing the company and unsubscribe from emails. The company does not sell, trade, or transfer PII to outside parties. It only collects information directly provided by the user, but retains billing information for 7 years and backups for 3 months. DSG does not use SSL encryption for its website, stating it doesn't ask for personal info other than name, email, and phone number. Authentication security is below average, with MFA available for less than 20% of services. Security testing coverage is limited, with 25-40% of systems undergoing regular testing. Privacy considerations are growing in development, with 20-35% of products assessed for privacy impacts. Algorithmic transparency is basic, with 10-20% of AI decisions having basic explainability, and Google AdSense is used for advertising.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

The company's environmental policy, adopted March 24, 2020, commits to meeting or exceeding all legal and regulatory environmental requirements and identifying and minimizing potential negative environmental impacts of operations.

Its Supplier Code of Conduct requires suppliers to adhere to all applicable laws and regulations regarding the prohibition of specific substances in products and to include all required product labeling for recycling and disposal. Suppliers are also required to be sensitive to their environmental impact, including hazardous waste handling and non-hazardous waste recycling and disposal, and to comply with applicable environmental laws and regulations, obtaining all required permits. A facility in Decatur, Alabama, owned by the company, was found to contain hazardous substances in the soil and groundwater from historical operations prior to the company's ownership, with a remediation plan approved by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management currently ongoing. TestEquity, a subsidiary, offers calibration, refurbishment, and rental solutions, including refurbished products. Gexpro Services provides value engineering and quality assurance, and offers product standardization when appropriate. Lawson's quality control department tests products to ensure they meet specifications, and its engineering department provides technical support and product safety training.