Date posted: 09/19/2006*

On Sept. 19, 2006, Raytheon was honored by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) for achieving a 100 percent score on the annual HRC Corporate Equality Index for the second consecutive year. The HRC, which is the nation’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) rights organization, uses the Corporate Equality Index as a tool to rate American businesses on how they treat GLBT employees, consumers and investors.

“After becoming the first aerospace and defense company to ever achieve a 100 percent score in 2005, we realized that the significance of winning this award a second time was not only about scoring well but also receiving the recognition for making the long-term commitment to building a diverse and inclusive environment,” said Hayward Bell, chief diversity officer at Raytheon.

The Corporate Equality Index rates companies on a scale of 0 to 100 percent, based on a number of criteria, including whether they: 

• include “sexual orientation” in their primary written nondiscrimination policy;
• include “gender identity” or “gender identity and/or expression” in their primary written non-discrimination policy;
• offer health insurance coverage to employees’ same-sex domestic partners firmwide or provide cash compensation to employees to purchase health insurance for a domestic partner on their own;
• officially recognize and support a GLBT employee resource group or have a firmwide diversity council or working group whose mission specifically includes GLBT diversity, or would support employees’ forming a GLBT employee resource group if some expressed interest by providing meeting space and other resources;
• offer diversity training that includes sexual orientation and/or gender identity and expression in the workplace;
• engage in respectful and appropriate marketing to the GLBT community and/or provide support through their corporate foundation or otherwise to GLBT health, educational, political or community organizations or events;
• engage in corporate action that would undermine the goal of equal rights for GLBT people.

“With more than 80,000 employees worldwide, Raytheon approaches diversity as an opportunity for success, since a team-oriented workplace helps us to become a stronger company for our employees and a stronger partner for our customers and shareholders,” said Bell.

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