| Girlfriends' 1999 Lesbian Career Guide America's 10 Best Lesbian Places to Work
Our survey of the Fortune 500 finds the most
lesbian-friendly companies.
By Kathleen
Hildenbrand
Every year Fortune magazine tallies its
own list of "Best Companies to Work For," but Girlfriends decided to
take it one step further. We contacted all of the Fortune 500 companies that offer
domestic partner benefits, and then put them through our own test. Sure, we asked them
general questions about employee benefits and workplace diversity, but we also found out
what the company was like for lesbians specifically: Do they have an official policy
prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation? Are there any out lesbians in
upper management? Is there a gay and lesbian employee organization? We tallied the
results, and here you have it: our first-ever list of the best companies for lesbians to
work for.
| #1 |
Chase Manhattan |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 61 |
46 |
| Hardly the bastion of
white straight masculinity that you would expect, Chase's workforce is very diverse; 40
percent are people of color, and 46 percent of upper management are women. This huge
financial corporation rose to the top of our list for its strong scores across the board.
In addition to shattering glass ceilings, the company offers exceptional benefits and has
done its share of gay good citizenship. They're a big presence in their hometown of
Houston, Texas's gay community, even sponsoring the local queer youth group. Lesbian moms
take note; in addition to adoption assistance, Chase offers its own child care centers
with 20 free days of emergency child care per year. |
| #2 |
Monsanto |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 38 |
27 |
| This St. Louis, Missouri,
chemical company trusts its employees so much that they don't track employee sick days.
"All of our programs are designed to be hassle-free, to trust people," explains
Susan Ryan, director of diversity. Between the generous vacation package and the on-site
perks such as fitness centers, take-home meals, mothers' rooms with breast pumps, and
business casual dress every day, it's easy to see why workers wouldn't abuse this trust.
The company's generous, easy-going spirit extends to its lesbian employees as well:
"[Being lesbian] is no big deal here," says Ryan. "If someone brings their
partner to a company event, there's no special notice or gossip." |
| #3 |
Fannie Mae |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 54 |
32 |
| A serious financial
company with a whimsical name, Fannie Mae prides itself on treating its employees well.
Housing assistance, full tuition benefits, and free on-site health assessments are a few
of the perks that keep its employees happy—only seven percent of its workers leave
voluntarily each year. Fannie Mae also earns high marks for the diversity of its
workplace—40 percent are people of color, and out lesbians are found in upper
management. Fannie Mae also puts its money where its heart is; its charitable foundation
has contributed more than $4 million to women's and gay groups, including the Mautner
Project for Lesbians With Cancer. |
| #4 |
American Express |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 68 |
53 |
| Women rule at American
Express. It's not just a figure of speech—this company has the highest percentage of
women employees and managers of all the companies we surveyed. The New York City-based
credit and travel services company has already received recognition from scores of other
women's magazines, including Working Mother and Working Woman, but they caught our eye for
their treatment of gay and lesbian employees. Staffing managers regularly participate in
gay and lesbian employee meetings, the company recruits at various Pride events, and the
gay and lesbian employee network is part of the company's much-touted Diversity Council. |
| #5 |
Coors |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 24 |
29 |
| Dogged with boycotts
because of the far right spending habits of its founding family, the Coors company
has—if anything—over-compensated. The Colorado brewery goes beyond being merely
gay-friendly, actively recruiting gay and lesbian employees and funding numerous gay
events across the country. "The reason I came to work here is because I knew several
other lesbians who were very happy here," says Mary Cheney, corporate relations
manager for the gay and lesbian community. "It's a very open environment."
Perhaps that explains why their employee turnover rate is so phenomenally low: only three
percent of workers leave voluntarily each year. |
| #6 |
Eastman Kodak |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 37 |
27 |
| A picture may speak a
thousand words, but when photos of lesbian and gay families are prominently displayed at a
corporation, that says even more—Kodak contributed materials and funding for the
photo exhibit "Love Makes a Family: Living in Gay and Lesbian Families." The
film and camera company also sponsored the Out and Equal Conference on Lesbian, Bisexual,
and Transgender Workplace Issues and last year's Gay Games in Amsterdam. The Rochester,
New York, company has shed its reputation as a stuffy, old-fashioned corporation, and
judging from its active gay and lesbian employee group and the out lesbians in upper
management, it has become a place that lesbians can feel comfortable calling home. |
| #7 |
Aetna |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 76 |
n/a |
| As a large insurance
provider, Aetna knows that good health makes for good business. Accordingly, their list of
stress-busting and health-boosting employee benefits goes on and on: fitness centers with
massage therapists, a mammogram vehicle that travels to company sites, and business casual
dress every day, to name a few. Most importantly, this Connecticut company encourages
flexible schedules for its workers, including telecommuting, compressing work weeks, and
reducing hours to part time. Their impressive slate of benefits is extended to part-timers
as well. ANGLE, the company's gay and lesbian employee network, holds regular social
events and is represented on the company's diversity board. |
| #8 |
Bank Boston |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 66 |
31 |
| Lesbian employees at
BankBoston have friends in high places—the chief financial officer sponsors the gay
and lesbian employee group, and the director of workplace effectiveness is an out lesbian.
It's no coincidence that BankBoston has gone out of its way to support its queer
employees; during the company's Gay and Lesbian Awareness Week, a huge rainbow flag flew
in front of their corporate headquarters. "I must have gone to the window a half
dozen times during the day just to look at the flag," says gay employee Stephen
D'Agostino. It looks as if the mandatory diversity training and well-connected gay and
lesbian employee group have really paid off for this East Coast bank. |
| #9 |
Chevron |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 23 |
n/a |
| A big oil company is a
lesbian-friendly environment? It can be, especially when the corporation in question is
based in San Francisco, California. Chevron, like all companies doing business with the
city, is required to offer domestic benefits—but their dedication to gay and lesbian
causes goes beyond just following the rules. "We were the first oil company to
include sexual orientation in our nondiscrimination and nonharassment policies,"
reports Kirk Nass of the Chevron Gay and Lesbian Employee Association. The company also
has been a high-profile donator to AIDS causes and earned bonus points for sponsoring the
Lesbians of Achievement, Vision, and Action (LAVA) Awards. |
| #10 |
NCR |
% women employees |
% women upper mgrs |
| 30 |
10 |
| Dayton, Ohio, hardly
springs to mind as the most likely site for a progressive company, but this computer and
office equipment supplier proves this wrong. With programs explicitly designed to retain
and promote gays and lesbians, NCR has earned its lesbian stripes. LEAGUE, the company's
gay and lesbian employee group, sponsored its own Professional Development Conference last
year and is very active within the company. NCR's regular employee benefits aren't too
shabby, either, including adoption assistance, on-site fitness centers, and financial
planning assistance. |
Research assistance provided by Rachel Wiener.
Companies were ranked on the basis of their scores in four categories: workplace
diversity, women's issues, overall employee benefits and satisfaction, and gay and lesbian
issues.
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