Sep 08, 2006  |  By: ZACK HUDSON  | COMMENTS     

A controversial partnership between a gay business network and Wal-Mart, the largest private employer in the nation, represents nothing more than “shameless marketing,” according to Pride at Work, a gay constituency of the AFL-CIO labor union.

The remarks came on the heels of an agreement between Wal-Mart and the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce that the chamber says opens a link to gay-owned businesses to join the retail behemoth’s manufacturing and service supply chain with preferred minority vendor status.

“Our community is a smart community, and we can see a shameless marketing opportunity when it comes,” said Jeremy Bishop, Pride at Work program director.

Bishop questioned the validity of the arrangement, announced by the NGLCC on Aug. 21, and warned that Wal-Mart interference could be a death knell for smaller gay businesses, as well as U.S. jobs.

“If there were any LGBT organization or company big enough to supply Wal-Mart, what Wal-Mart does is once they have a contract with you, they encourage you to send your manufacturing and production overseas. So in the end, it will just deplete more jobs here in America,” he said.

“Even if they were 100 percent perfect on LGBT issues, it doesn’t make up for the fact that they don’t treat their employees well,” Bishop said, echoing years of criticism of Wal-Mart from labor groups, who accuse the company of shilling out low wages and expensive benefits while ignoring meaningful diversity.

NGLCC President Justin Nelson acknowledged the criticism from Pride at Work and other labor groups, but shied away from entering the fight.

“That’s something for Wal-Mart and the unions to work out,” he said.

To enter into partnership with the NGLCC, Wal-Mart paid $25,000 in annual dues to become a business sponsor of the Supplier Diversity Initiative. According to Nelson, the fee was arranged on an established sliding scale, which charges between $5,000 and $25,000 to companies that wish to join the program, based on corporate revenues.

But Pride at Work’s Bishop balked at the partnership price in context of his estimate that Wal-Mart earns more than $10 billion annually.

“If we’re going to be shills for corporate money, let’s ask for a little bit more money. Wal-Mart is a billion dollar business, and they’re giving us $25,000?” he asked.

Wal-Mart press office employees declined comment for this story. Wal-Mart spokesperson Bob McAdams has not responded to repeated interview requests.

D.P. benefits urged

Another Wal-Mart critic, Wal-Mart Watch, has come out in favor of the partnership and Wal-Mart’s policies for gay employees, which include recognizing same-sex couples for employee medical and family leave-of-absence polices, as well as establishing an internal organization for gay Wal-Mart employees.

The company also added sexual orientation to its non-discrimination policy in 2003.

 “We view this partnership as a step in the right direction,” said Nu Wexler, spokesperson for the watchdog group with close ties to labor unions. “We would encourage Wal-Mart to seriously consider same-sex partner benefits. We believe that treating employees with dignity and respect should also include fair wages and affordable health care.”

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay political group, releases an annual Corporate Equality Index scoring companies on policies related to gay and transgender issues. Wal-Mart scored 57 out of a possible 100 on the 2006 index.

The retailer has contacted HRC about how to improve its score, according to HRC Workplace Project Director Daryl Herrschaft.

“The company has made some really important first steps for its GLBT employees, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. As of right now, the company doesn’t extend eligibility for health insurance benefits for employees domestic partners,” Herrschaft said.

Wal-Mart also needs to add gender identity and expression to its company non-discrimination policies and diversity training, Herrschaft said.

Wal-Mart spokesperson Jeff Fogleman declined comment last week on whether the company is considering offering domestic partner benefits.

Conservative groups blasted Wal-Mart’s work with the NGLCC. “From our perspective, this appears to normalize and further what we call the gay agenda within corporate America,” said Matt Barber, corporate outreach director for Americans for Truth.