For the first time, Andersen joins annual rating from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in assessment of LGBTQ workplace equality
At Andersen Corporation, we strive to be a workplace where all employees are inspired to achieve their full potential. For the first time, Andersen is participating in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2021 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ workplace equality. Andersen joins the ranks of 1,142 major U.S. businesses that were also ranked in the 2021 CEI.
Andersen is building a culture of inclusion, committing to allyship with our LGBTQ workforce and working to understand gaps in our policies and practices. Through the work of employee resource networks, including its PRIDE+ network, Andersen characterizes an ally as a person who uses their privilege to advocate on behalf of someone else who doesn’t hold that same privilege.
“This work is about not simply noticing an injustice but stepping up to be an ally who takes action by bringing attention to the injustice and working to correct it,” said Tracey Gibson, Andersen’s vice president and chief diversity officer.
“’Be Orange. Be You.’ is our rally with employees and tells them that we value the uniqueness of each and every person and how they show up every day,” Gibson said. “By voluntarily participating in the Human Rights Campaign index and assessing our practices and policies, Andersen is creating transparency and communicating our commitment to a LGBTQ workforce.”
One activity during 2020 that contributed to Andersen’s score of 85 of 100 was establishing an equal employment opportunity policy available to employees and also publicly available on AndersenWindows.com, making it visible to job candidates, customers, vendors and homeowners.
The Human Rights Campaign CEI will continue to guide Andersen as the company advances diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across its workforce of more than 10,000 employees.
“From the previously unimaginable impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, to a long overdue reckoning with racial injustice, 2020 was an unprecedented year. Yet, many businesses across the nation stepped up and continued to prioritize and champion LGBTQ equality,” said Alphonso David, Human Rights Campaign president. “This year has shown us that tools like the CEI are crucial in the work to increase equity and inclusion in the workplace, but also that companies must breathe life into these policies and practices in real and tangible ways. Thank you to the companies that understand protecting their LGBTQ employees and consumers from discrimination is not just the right thing to do — but the best business decision.”
The results of the 2021 CEI showcase how 1,142 U.S.-based companies are not only promoting LGBTQ-friendly workplace policies in the U.S., but also for the 57 percent of CEI-rated companies with global operations who are helping advance the cause of LGBTQ inclusion in workplaces abroad.
The CEI rates employers providing these crucial protections to over 18 million U.S. workers and an additional 17 million outside of the U.S. Companies rated in the CEI include Fortune magazine’s 500 largest publicly traded businesses, American Lawyer magazine’s top 200 revenue-grossing law firms (AmLaw 200), and hundreds of publicly and privately held mid- to large-sized businesses.
The CEI rates companies on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars:
The full report is available online at www.hrc.org/cei.
ABOUT THE HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FOUNDATION
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.
Posted: January 28, 2021
