September, 14 2009, 10:19am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Brad Luna 202/216.1514
Trevor Thomas 202/216.1547
Number of Top Rated Businesses for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Workers Jumps Despite Tough Economy
Release of Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index begins two-week “Policy to Practice” conversation around equality in the workplace
WASHINGTON
The
number of businesses with perfect ratings based on lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender workplace policies and benefits rose by twenty
percent in the past twelve months - despite the serious economic
downturn - according to a new report released today by the Human Rights
Campaign Foundation, the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender civil rights organization. The 2010 edition of the
Corporate Equality Index, which rates 590 businesses on a scale from 0
to 100 percent, reports 305 businesses achieved top ratings, compared
to 260 last year. To view the report visit: www.HRC.org/CEI
Today's
release kicks-off the start of a two-week conversation around workplace
equality for the LGBT community. "Policy to Practice" is a series of
extended conversations designed to not only provide information
regarding policies and benefits among some of the country's largest
employers, but to also spur dialogue around how those policies are
implemented. In addition to today's release of the CEI 2010 that
benchmarks individual businesses, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation
will also release the "Degrees of Equality" report that aims to
understand and bridge the gap between policy and real-life experiences
of LGBT employees. At the same time, some of the country's leading
business professionals and workplace diversity and inclusion experts
will blog at www.HRCBackstory.org.
"The
Corporate Equality Index 2010 shows that, even in the most challenging
economy, leading employers are forging ahead of federal and state law
to recruit and retain a diverse workforce - regardless of employees'
sexual orientation and gender identity or expression," said Human
Rights Campaign Foundation President Joe Solmonese. "While Congress
considers a federal law that prohibits workplace discrimination based
on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, businesses can
take immediate steps to ensure all employees in their workforce are
treated fairly today. These 305 businesses, and all employers actively
working to improve their rating, set an example for all U.S. employers,
including the federal government."
The
305 top-rated businesses collectively employ more than 9 million
full-time employees. These workers are protected from employment
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or
expression because of their employers' policies on diversity &
inclusion, training and benefits. Federal law does not protect
employees from discrimination based on real or perceived gender
identity or sexual orientation, although many cities, counties and
states have such protections. Similarly, employer-based health
insurance benefits typically don't cover LGBT workers and their
families. Statements from executives at businesses with 100 percent
ratings are available at www.HRC.org/CEIstatements.
The
Corporate Equality Index 2010 report shows impressive gains in policies
and protections across the board. In particular, transgender workers
have made major gains since the report was first published in 2002,
when just 5 percent of rated businesses prohibited discrimination based
on gender identity or expression. The Corporate Equality Index 2010
reports that figure has increased exponentially: 72 percent of rated
businesses now prohibit discrimination based on gender identity or
expression.
Other major findings in the Corporate Equality Index 2010 include:
*
Eleven of the top 20 Fortune-ranked companies received 100 percent
ratings. McKesson Corp. added gender identity this year to
reach 83 percent.
* Eighty-seven of American Lawyer magazine's 200 largest law firms received 100 percent ratings.
*
More than a decade after rescinding partner benefits in 1997, Perot
Systems Corp. reinstated partner benefits earlier this
year. Meanwhile, Exxon Mobil Corp. still refuses to
reinstate the policies and benefits that Mobil Corp. had implemented
prior to its acquisition by Exxon Corp. in 1999.
In
addition, 66 major employers - including eight of the Fortune 20 and
seventeen AmLaw 200 firms - now provide transgender-inclusive health
insurance that would cover sex-reassignment surgery and related
treatments. This component will be required, among other new
requirements, in two years for the Corporate Equality Index 2012 report.
"The
Corporate Equality Index has provided a roadmap for employers to
address their policies, benefits and other practices broadly since
2002," said Daryl Herrschaft, director of the HRC Foundation's
Workplace Project. "The new criteria we announced earlier this year
define even better practices. We look forward to working with employers
to implement these new best practices over the coming years."
More information on the new criteria is available at www.hrc.org/NewCEI.
The Corporate Equality Index 2010 report is available at www.hrc.org/cei.
The Human Rights Campaign represents a grassroots force of over 750,000 members and supporters nationwide. As the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, HRC envisions an America where LGBT people are ensured of their basic equal rights, and can be open, honest and safe at home, at work and in the community.
LATEST NEWS
State of Emergency Declared After Cargo Ship Destroys Baltimore Bridge
Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin said he was "deeply concerned for the safety and well-being of everyone affected by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore."
Mar 26, 2024
This is a developing story... Please check back for possible updates...
A state of emergency was declared in Maryland early Tuesday morning after a large cargo ship slammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore leading to its total collapse and sending a still unverified number of vehicles and people into the Patapsco River.
As the Baltimore Sunreports:
In a Tuesday morning news conference, just a few hours after the incident, Baltimore Fire Department Chief James Wallace said authorities are "still very much in an active search and rescue posture" noting they are searching for "upwards of seven individuals" and that sonar has detected the presence of vehicles in the water. There is no indication that the event was intentional, Wallace said.
"This is a tragedy that you could never imagine … It looked like something out of an action movie," Mayor Brandon Scott said.
The terrifying footage of the bridge's collapse—which CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez commented was "almost unbelievable" to watch—is circulating widely on news channels and social media:
This video is almost unbelievable. The Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore literally collapsed this morning after it was struck by this large ship. pic.twitter.com/rYuy4U2r7H
— Omar Jimenez (@OmarJimenez) March 26, 2024
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Tuesday that he had spoken with Mayor Scott and well as Maryland Governor Wes Moore and was helping to coordinate federal assistance.
"Rescue efforts remain underway and drivers in the Baltimore area should follow local responder guidance on detours and response," said Buttigieg.
Moore said in a statement he had declared a state of emergency and that work was underway to "quickly deploy federal resources" to the area.
"We are thankful for the brave men and women who are carrying out efforts to rescue those involved and pray for everyone's safety," said Moore. "We will remain in close contact with federal, state, and local entities that are carrying out rescue efforts as we continue to assess and respond to this tragedy."
Kevin Cartwright of the Baltimore Fire Department told CNN that the number of missing people may be higher than reported in other outlets. "Unfortunately," said Cartwright, "we understand that there were up to 20 individuals who may be in the Patapsco River right now as well as multiple vehicles."
Early reporting indicated that no crew members aboard the container ship, which sails under a Singapore flag, were injured or missing. A local harbor pilot was also said to be on board at the time of the crash.
"Deeply concerned for the safety and well-being of everyone affected by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore," said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) following the accident. "I'm profoundly thankful to first responders on the scene and will track rescue efforts by local, state, and federal authorities."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Grave 'Threat to Journalists' Remains as UK Court Delays Assange Extradition Ruling
"The Biden administration should take the opportunity to drop this dangerous case once and for all," said the executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation.
Mar 26, 2024
This is a developing story... Please check back for possible updates...
The United Kingdom's High Court ruled Tuesday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange cannot immediately be extradited to the United States and gave the Biden administration three weeks to provide "assurances" that the publisher's First Amendment rights will be protected and that he won't face the death penalty.
If the U.S. does not provide the requested assurances, Assange will be allowed to pursue a limited appeal of his extradition. Should the U.S. submit assurances by the April 16 deadline, a hearing will be held on May 20 to determine whether they are "satisfactory."
Assange, whose health has deteriorated badly during his five years in a high-security London jail, faces 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act and a possible 175-year prison sentence in the U.S. for publishing classified information—a common journalistic practice. WikiLeaks disclosures exposed grave U.S. and U.K. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Press freedom and human rights groups say the extradition of Assange to the U.S. would set a dangerous precedent and pose a dire threat to journalism everywhere.
Trevor Timm, executive director of Freedom of the Press Foundation, said in a statement Tuesday that "we are glad Julian Assange is not getting extradited today."
"But this legal battle is far from over, and the threat to journalists and the news media from the Espionage Act charges against Assange remains," said Timm. "Assange's conviction in American courts would create a dangerous precedent that the U.S. government can and will use against reporters of all stripes who expose its wrongdoing or embarrass it. The Biden administration should take the opportunity to drop this dangerous case once and for all."
"It's long past time for the U.S. Justice Department to abandon the Espionage Act charges and resolve this case."
The U.S., which has been aggressively pursuing Assange's extradition for years, previously provided the U.K. government with assurances that Assange would not be held at a supermax prison that's notorious for its inhumane treatment of inmates.
Human rights groups have said such assurances from the U.S. government are "inherently unreliable" and should not be taken seriously by British authorities.
Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said in response to Tuesday's ruling that "prosecuting Assange for the publication of classified information would have profound implications for press freedom, because publishing classified information is what journalists and news organizations often need to do in order to expose wrongdoing by government."
"It's long past time for the U.S. Justice Department to abandon the Espionage Act charges and resolve this case," said Jaffer.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Sanders Rips 'Absurd' US Claim That Israel Is Not Violating International Law
"The State Department's position makes a mockery of U.S. law and assurances provided to Congress," said Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Mar 26, 2024
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Monday said the U.S. State Department's determination that Israel is not violating international law with its assault on the Gaza Strip is "absurd on its face," pointing to the mass death, destruction, and starvation that Israeli forces have inflicted on the territory's population over the past six months.
"Thirty-two thousand Palestinians in Gaza have been killed and almost 75,000 injured, two-thirds of whom are women and children," Sanders (I-Vt.) said in a statement. "Some 60% of the housing units have been damaged or destroyed, and almost all medical facilities have been made inoperable. Today, hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children are facing starvation because [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu won't let in sufficient humanitarian aid, while thousands of trucks are waiting to get into Gaza."
"The State Department's position," said Sanders, "makes a mockery of U.S. law and assurances provided to Congress."
The senator's statement came after State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters during a press briefing earlier Monday that the Biden administration has not found Israel "to be in violation of international humanitarian law, either when it comes to the conduct of the war or when it comes to the provision of humanitarian assistance."
Miller was responding to a question about assurances the administration has received from the Israeli government that its use of American weaponry has complied with international law and that it has permitted U.S. humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, where the entire population is facing acute hunger.
Under a new Biden administration policy known as NSM-20, recipients of American military aid are required to provide the U.S. government with "credible and reliable" written assurances that they are using such assistance "in a manner consistent with all applicable international and domestic law and policy."
Late last week, a group of U.S. senators—including Sanders—warned the Biden administration that deeming Israeli assurances credible would "be inconsistent with the letter and spirit of NSM-20" and "establish an unacceptable precedent" for the application of the policy "in other situations around the world."
"Until Biden is ready to impose real policy consequences on Netanyahu's government, the famine will continue."
It is a violation of U.S. law to continue sending military assistance to a country that is obstructing the delivery of American humanitarian aid. Last month, far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich blocked a U.S.-funded flour shipment from entering the Gaza Strip, and Israeli forces have repeatedly fired on convoys attempting to deliver aid to desperate Gazans.
Prominent human rights groups have been calling on the U.S. to impose an arms embargo on Israel for months, pointing to documented examples of the Israeli military using American weaponry to commit atrocities in Gaza.
But the Biden administration has refused to even apply concrete restrictions on American military aid. Over the weekend, U.S. President Joe Biden signed into law a measure that approves $3.8 billion in unconditional military assistance for the Israeli government and imposes a one-year ban on funding for the primary humanitarian aid organization in Gaza.
Jeremy Konyndyk, the president of Refugees International and a former USAID official, said Monday that Israel's assurances to the U.S. are "not remotely credible" and argued the Biden administration is undermining efforts to combat the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza by accepting the Israeli government's claims.
The U.S., he said, is "talking a big game about fighting the famine that its bombs and diplomatic cover have helped create." Resorting to "gimmicky" efforts such as airdrops and temporary ports while a U.S. ally obstructs humanitarian aid "is not how you fight a famine," Konyndyk argued.
"Fundamentally Biden must choose: between continuing to enable Netanyahu, or ending the famine. There's no way to split the difference," said Konyndyk. "Until Biden is ready to impose real policy consequences on Netanyahu's government, the famine will continue."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular