Global Business Coalition

Filed under: Workplace

Join the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in the initiative to advance LGBT workplace equality around the world by becoming a member of HRC’s Global Business Coalition.

The global landscape for the social and economic inclusion of the LGBT community is a patchwork of extremes, from progressive nation states leading on matters of equality (e.g. marriage equality, labor inclusion, openly LGBT leaders, etc.) to nations implementing laws rolling back basic LGBT rights. Cutting across this global patchwork is a strong line of global businesses seeking to advance profitability and overall viability by attracting and retaining a diverse and talented employee workforce - one that is inclusive of the LGBT community.

HRC Workplace in India for Workplace Summit

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation's Global Business Coalition is a consortium of major global businesses committed to upholding workplace protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees – along with the rest of their workforce – everywhere that they do  business. By becoming a member, employers adhere to the statement below:

The world’s strongest and most competitive businesses are committed to fundamental fairness and opportunity in the workplace for all employees, including basic protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, along with the rest of their workforce. As global business leaders, we support workplace fairness for all employees throughout our operations, both domestically and abroad, because equality is simply essential to good business around the world.

Features of Membership:

Members of the HRC Global Business Coalition have special access to HRC events, opportunities, resources and network of experts.  For example, Symantec Corp’s commitment to inclusion in India inspired this heartfelt piece on how valuable receiving support at work can be for LGBT employees, especially under challenging social and political circumstances in-country. In May 2016, Coalition members received a special guide on recognizing 12th annual International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOT) in conjunction with HRC Global program’s collaboration with the U.N. and others. These are just a few examples. We are ramping up our efforts and look forward to more opportunities together as we move forward!

Expertise and Resources

  • Direct consultation from HRC Foundation on global workplace equality

  • Quarterly newsletter from HRC Foundation regarding global LGBT news and areas of focus with an eye on business impact

  • Toolkits and First Views/Input of New Resources

  • Liaison with in-country LGBT networks

 

Visibility and Branding

  • Leveraging of brand best practices across HRC platforms such as blogs, resources, media and more

  • Facilitated, confidential thought leader forums on subjects such as:

    • “Self ID and Navigating Global Systems: Best Practices;”

    • “Company and Culture: How Cross Cultural ERG Collaboration Can Happen;”

    • “Basic Protections: Ensuring Global Consistency for LGBT Protections”

global forum with VP Biden

In January of 2016, coalition members had a special seat at the table to hear directly from Vice President Joe Biden at the World Economic Forum in Davos on the critical role the private sector can play in promoting global equality.

 

Expectations of Coalition Members:

There is no cost to joining the Coalition. We are focused on convening businesses committed to equality.

Commitment to Global LGBT Equality

  • Implementation of a global non-discrimination statement/code of conduct for LGBT employees that includes protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

  • By becoming a member, employers adhere to the statement below:

    • The world’s strongest and most competitive businesses are committed to fundamental fairness and opportunity in the workplace for all employees, including basic protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, along with the rest of their workforce. As global business leaders, we support workplace fairness for all employees throughout our operations, both domestically and abroad, because equality is simply essential to good business around the world.

 

Promoting Equality Globally

  • Best practice and experiential sharing on the businesses’ journey to global inclusion

  • Concentration areas of leadership include:

    • ERG development and collaboration;
    • Public policy advocacy; community (NGO/civil society) engagement, and other emerging themes

  • Where possible, public testimonials on their own experiences with LGBT inclusion to press, business audiences and Workplace Equality Program resources

Members of the Coalition: 

  • Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
  • Accenture
  • Airbnb Inc.
  • Alcoa Inc.
  • American Airlines
  • Arconic
  • AT&T
  • Biogen
  • Boston Scientific Corp. 
  • CA Technologies
  • Chevron
  • The Coca-Cola Company
  • Destination Weddings Travel Group
  • The Dow Chemical Co.
  • Eli Lilly & Co.
  • General Electric Co. (GE)
  • Google
  • GSK
  • Hilton Worldwide Inc.
  • Hogan Lovells
  • IBM
  • JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc.)
  • JPMorgan Chase & Co
  • Lexmark International Inc.
  • ManpowerGroup
  • Marriott International
  • MasterCard Inc. 
  • Microsoft Corp.
  • Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams
  • Monsanto Co.
  • Procter & Gamble
  • Replacements, Ltd.
  • Salesforce 
  • Starbucks Corp. 
  • Symantec Corp
  • Tech Data Corp.
  • United Parcel Service (UPS)
  • Winston & Strawn LLP

To sign on: 

Any authorized employee (typically a Diversity, HR, External or Policy Affairs Lead) can download the form here, sign and scan it back to us at workplace@hrc.org.

Questions? Email us to schedule a call with our Workplace Equality team.  

Download supporting documents:

Global Business Coalition sign-on form

Frequently Asked Questions