The Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank and Sun Life Financial Inc., all based in Toronto, have each earned a perfect score on the LGBT corporate Canadian index (LGBT CCI) 2017 annual survey, the LGBT CCI Co. announced on Thursday.
The index identifies corporations listed on the S&P/TSX composite index that promote diversity and inclusion of lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals in the workplace. Corporations included must have a formal policy of non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender expression, and that policy must be clearly communicated to all employees.
Participants are required to complete a survey which calculates points on factors such as whether the corporation has an LGBT employee group or committee, a designated chief diversity officer, active recruitment of members of the LGBT community, equal employment benefits for employees in same-sex partnerships, and visible LGBT role models employed within the firm.
“Numerous studies have clearly indicated that corporations embracing diversity perform better,” says Alexis Klein, president of LGBT CCI Co., in an email statement to IE. “Canadian investors are interested in purchasing stocks of companies that embrace diversity to potentially achieve higher returns.”
Fourteen companies agreed to participant in the 2017 survey. Among the participants, Toronto-based CI Financial Corp., Calgary-based Bonavista Energy Corp., and Calgary-based PrairieSky Royalty Ltd., performed the lowest with the first two earning scores of 42.5 and the latter earning 47.5, each out of 100.