MetroWest companies LGBT friendly, BJ's lags

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By Emily Micucci

Five companies located in the MetroWest region earned the highest scores possible on the Human Rights Campaign’s annual Corporate Equality Index (CEI), that measures major companies’ lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) inclusion in the workplace.

A civil rights organization representing LGBT people, the Human Rights Campaign officially ranked 851 U.S. companies in the 2016 CEI. Nationwide, 407 companies earned a score of 100 percent, an improvement over last year when 366 earned a perfect score that was a record number of perfect scores, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Those with perfect scores also earned the distinction of being one of the “Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality.”

In MetroWest, top scorers include Boston Scientific Corp., based in Marlborough; EMC Corp. of Hopkinton; Raytheon Co., which has operations in Sudbury and Marlborough; Staples Inc. of Framingham and TJX Cos., also of Framingham. BJ's Wholesale Club was an exception in MetroWest, earning a score of 25, one of the lowest among Massachusetts companies.

Perfect scores hit an all-time high this year, despite the fact that scoring criteria was more stringent than in years past, according to the Human Rights Campaign. This year, companies with global operations were required to extend non-discriminatory policies to employees worldwide.

The companies were rated on criteria falling under five categories, including non-discriminatory policies; employment benefits; organizational competency around LGBT diversity and inclusion; public commitment to LGBT equality and responsible citizenship.

EMC, Boston Scientific and Staples each released statements following the news Thursday.

Staples said it’s the sixth year in a row it earned a perfect score. The company offers a range of events and programs supporting LGBT employees, including a group called “Out at Work” for LGBT associates, which organizes LGBT advocacy events at corporate offices across the U.S.

Jackie Glenn, chief diversity officer at EMC Corp., said equality for LGBT employees and all minorities, is essential to business success.

“Diversity and inclusion helps businesses, and the communities in which they operate, to thrive,” Glenn said in a statement.

BJ’s 'disappointed' with score

The average score for the 42 Massachusetts companies rated in the 2016 CEI was 88. Near the bottom scoring scale in Massachusetts was BJ’s Wholesale Club, which earned a score of 25. The Westborough-based company issued a statement on Thursday afternoon, reacting to the result.

"We’re disappointed in that score since we do not believe it accurately reflects BJ’s commitment to all its team members, including lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender team members ... We plan to review our policies and practices against the (Human Rights Campaign) metrics to ensure that in the future we receive credit for our strong commitment to diversity," wrote BJ's spokeswoman Maria Fruci.