In time to kick-off of the holiday shopping season, the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, today released an updated version of the popular guide to hundreds of American brands rated on businesses’ treatment of LGBT employees. “Buying for Workplace Equality 2011” divides businesses and their consumer products into red, yellow and green categories based on their score on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index, a nationally recognized benchmark of LGBT inclusion. The guide is available for download and viewing online at www.hrc.org/BuyersGuide.
“As we embark on another holiday buying season without federal protections for LGBT workers, it is important that consumers know which businesses treat LGBT workers right,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “For consumers who make purchasing decisions based on how a company treats their LGBT employees, the Buying for Workplace Equality Guide is an essential tool.”
The LGBT community’s buying power is fast approaching $800 billion this year, according to research by Witeck-Combs Communications and Marketresearch.com. A recent study by Witeck-Combs/Harris Interactive also found a substantial majority (70%) of gay men and lesbians report that they have switched products or service providers because they found out the company had engaged in actions that are perceived as harmful to the LGBT community. Around one in three (34%) gay and lesbian consumers had done so within the last two years.
“This is our community’s chance to vote with our dollars and send America’s businesses a clear message that equal treatment of LGBT employees is good for the bottom line. Especially in today’s economy, equality is good business.” said Solmonese.
Consumers who care about equal workplace practices are encouraged to contact businesses to thank them for their support, ask them to revise their policies, or encourage them to participate in the Corporate Equality Index. This year, the 2011 guide makes reaching out to businesses even easier. Both the web and iPhone versions of the guide now contain contact information for many businesses that are featured in the guide. Tools are available at: www.hrc.org/ConsumerAdvocacy.
Also new in this year’s guide are estimated scores for businesses that, after repeated attempts, have not responded to the CEI survey. A business’s estimated score is based on information the Human Rights Campaign has been able to collect without help or input from a business.
This is the sixth year the Human Rights Campaign has published the guide which has been viewed and downloaded more than 300,000 times at www.hrc.org/BuyersGuide. The Buying for Workplace Equality iPhone application has also been updated and can be downloaded at www.hrc.org/iphone.
