A new report on the state of the workplace for LGBT Americans shows that the Fortune 500 is way ahead of churches when it comes to equal rights. In some cases it’s easier to be gay at Chevron than in church on Sunday morning according to Religion Dispatches.
Long before the current recession sparked populist anger against Wall Street and the many businesses that have sacked employees, progressive theologians and religious believers—particularly advocates of unchecked and unregulated capitalism—were suspicious of the motivations of big business. Conservative Christians, on the other hand, often celebrate wealth as evidence of a righteous lifestyle. They even build megachurches that attract members using business models and corporate marketing strategies.
The irony in all of this is that corporate America is arguably the biggest supporter of LGBT rights. In general, gay people are more welcome at work than they are at church.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has recently released its annual report on The State of the Workplace for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Americans which features these statistics:
85% of Fortune 500 companies recognize protections based on sexual orientation for their employees.
57% of these companies offer domestic partnership benefits to same-sex couples.
18 companies within the Fortune 100 now offer transgender-inclusive health insurance benefits.