Cathy Bessant, Bank of America's
technology chief, is speaking out against a proposed gay marriage ban
in North Carolina.
If approved during the state's May 8
primary, Amendment One would bar North Carolina from recognizing the
relationships of gay and lesbian couples with marriage, civil unions
and possibly domestic partnerships.
“We're in a war with other states
across the country who would love to have the jobs that we have
today,” Bessant, global technology and operations executive at
BofA, said in a video posted on YouTube earlier this month by the
Coalition to Protect North Carolina Families. “Amendment One has
the potential to have a disastrous effect on our ability to attract
talent and keep talent in the state of North Carolina.”
“What Amendment One does is make it
look like we're a state that ignores both the needs and the
preferences of the next generation of America's and the world's
workforce. We've got to attract that generation. We've got to vote
no on Amendment One,” she added. (The video is embedded in the
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Bank of America, which operates in more
than 40 countries, employees more than 280,000 people, making it the
largest lender by number of employees.
North Carolina House Majority Leader
Paul Stam rejected the claim that the gay marriage ban is bad for
business.
“We added that language specifically
to allay unfounded assertions that this was going to hurt business,”
Stam told BloombergBusinessweek.
“They can give any kind of benefit they want. Where's the beef?”