Exxon Mobil has been charged with
violating Illinois' ban on workplace discrimination based on sexual
orientation.
Freedom to Work filed the complaint on
Wednesday with the Illinois Department of Human Rights.
According to the complaint, Exxon Mobil
was sent nearly identical resumes from a straight and a gay applicant
for the same post. The gay applicant appeared to be better
qualified.
Exxon Mobil reached out to the straight
candidate three times and ignored the gay candidate.
“Exxon has repeatedly claimed they do
not discriminate,” said Freedom to Work President Tico Almeida.
“We are bringing forward proof they've broken the law, and we're
hopeful this compelling case will move them over the tipping point.”
The charges come one week before
a shareholders meeting in Dallas will consider a resolution proposed by
New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli which would ban discrimination
based on sexual orientation and gender identity as part of the
company's equal employment opportunity policy.
Such a resolution has been defeated
every year since 1999.
Appearing on cabler Current's
Viewpoint, Almeida said his group would drop its lawsuit if
Exxon Mobil adopted the policy.
“If they will do that, we will settle
this case tomorrow,” Almeida said. But “I think they're going to
drag this out for a long time.” (The video is embedded on this
page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)