The Human Rights Campaign Foundation Recognizes 53 Argentinian Companies Dedicated to LGBTQ+ Workplace Inclusion

53 Argentinian Employers Participated in the first 'HRC Equidad AR' Report with 22 Earning Top Marks

WASHINGTON - July 14, 2022 - Today, The Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, in partnership with Instituto de Políticas Públicas LGBT, is releasing its first annual 'HRC Equidad AR: Global Workplace Equality Program' report. This program stands alongside leading South American benchmarking surveys completed in Mexico, Chile and Brazil. These surveys share information about employers who have demonstrated a commitment to LGBTQ+ equality by adopting crucial LGBTQ+-inclusive policies and practices for their employees. In 2022, 53 Argentinian companies participated and 22 earned top marks for their efforts to promote workplace LGBTQ+ inclusion.

"In its inaugural year, Equidad Argentina has collaborated with and challenged Argentinian employers to create better and more inclusive workplaces for LGBTQ+ employees. Workplaces in Argentina and around the world understand the importance of an LGBTQ+ workplace and that it is not only great for retention and recruitment but is the right thing to do for their employees," said RaShawn Hawkins, Human Rights Campaign Workplace Equality Director. "These 53 companies are taking a stand for equity and inclusion to make a difference in the lives of Argentinian employees, consumers and a society that values all LGBTQ+ people."

The Argentinian-based survey, inspired by the Human Rights Campaign's annual Corporate Equality Index (CEI), is one of HRC's four in-country programs in South America and Latin America, following the success of work that began in Mexico in 2016.

For Equidad AR, HRC partnered with Instituto de Políticas Públicas LGBT -- a nonprofit created to support LGBTI+-inclusive policies, practices and workplace inclusion. This partnership was facilitated by Esteban Paulón, a former HRC Global Innovator, who helped pass marriage equality legislation in Buenos Aires.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• Altogether the top-scoring 22 businesses employ 43,078 workers nationwide and the total of participating companies employ 83,532 workers.
• 97% of the companies surveyed have an office in the greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area, specifically in the areas of Rosario, Provincia de Santa Fe, and Bahía Blanca and Provincia de Buenos Aires.
• Additionally, 73% of the participating companies are large companies (more than 200 workers), 26.5% are medium companies (25-199 workers) and 0.5% are small companies (less than 25 workers).
• 41 (77%) of companies have already participated in HRC Equidad Mexico, HRC Equidade Brazil and Equidad Chile and 12 participated in Equidad Argentina to work with HRC for the first time.

The 2022 HRC Equidad AR report evaluated Argentinian businesses and corporations based on three core pillars of LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion:

• Adoption of nondiscrimination policies;
• Creation of employee resource groups or diversity and inclusion councils;
• Engagement in public activities to support LGBTQ+ inclusion.

Through its CEI and partnerships with local organizations, the HRC Foundation is leading the advancement of LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion and equality across the U.S., Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Chile impacting more than 39 million workers worldwide.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) people. Through its programs, the HRC Foundation seeks to make transformational change in the everyday lives of LGBTQ+ people, shedding light on inequity and deepening the public's understanding of LGBTQ+ issues, with a clear focus on advancing transgender and racial justice. Its work has transformed the landscape for more than 15 million workers, 11 million students, 600,000 clients in the adoption and foster care system and so much more. The HRC Foundation provides direct consultation and technical assistance to institutions and communities, driving the advancement of inclusive policies and practices; it builds the capacity of future leaders and allies through fellowship and training programs; and, with the firm belief that we are stronger working together, it forges partnerships with advocates in the U.S. and around the globe to increase our impact and shape the future of our work.