MADISON, Wis. (Dec. 6, 2023) – The Human Rights Campaign Foundation announced scores for their 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) – for the sixth year in a row, Alliant Energy (NASDAQ: LNT) satisfies all criteria and earned a top score of 100 on the CEI. The Foundation acknowledged the company with its “Equality 100 Award: Leader in LGBTQ+ Workplace Inclusion.” The CEI is the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace equality. Alliant Energy joins the ranks of 545 major U.S. businesses that also earned top marks this year.
“I’m proud of all our employees for their dedication to creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace where people can do the best work of their lives,” said Aimee Davis, vice president of marketing, communications and community affairs at Alliant Energy and executive sponsor of the company’s LGBTQ+ employee resource group. “Receiving the Equality 100 Award exemplifies our company and our employees' ongoing commitment to inclusion, equity and belonging. It helps us benchmark our progress and provides insights to help us create more innovative plans to become even more inclusive. It’s one more way we serve our customers and help to build stronger communities.”
RaShawn “Shawnie” Hawkins, Human Rights Campaign’s senior director of workplace equality said, “For well over two decades, businesses have played an important role in furthering LGBTQ+ equality by centering employee needs and voices when it comes to workplace inclusion. While there is much more work to be done, year-over-year growth in CEI participation is evidence of a business community that recognizes the responsibility and value in upholding equity and inclusion. The CEI is an ever-evolving tool – a blueprint that companies can use to show up more effectively in supporting their LGBTQ+ employees and their families.”
The results of the 2023-2024 CEI showcase how U.S.-based companies promote LGBTQ+ friendly workplace policies in the U.S. and abroad. The first year of the CEI included 319 participants; the 2023-2024 CEI now includes nearly 1,400 participants and further demonstrates the tremendous trajectory of the CEI. According to CEI, a record-breaking 1,340 businesses now have nondiscrimination protections specific to gender identity, up from just 17 in 2002. These critical nondiscrimination protections cover 21 million employees in the U.S. and around the globe.
The CEI rates employers providing crucial protections to over 20 million U.S. workers and an additional 18 million outside the U.S. Companies rated in the CEI include Fortune magazine’s 500 largest publicly traded businesses, American Lawyer magazine’s top 200 revenue-grossing law firms (AmLaw 200), and hundreds of publicly and privately held midsize to large businesses.
The CEI rates companies on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars:
- Nondiscrimination policies across business entities.
- Equitable benefits for LGBTQ+ workers and their families.
- Supporting an inclusive culture.
- Corporate social responsibility.
The full report is online at hrc.org/cei.
About Alliant Energy
Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ: LNT) provides regulated energy service to 995,000 electric and 425,000 natural gas customers across Iowa and Wisconsin. Alliant Energy's mission is to deliver energy solutions and exceptional service customers and communities count on – safely, efficiently and responsibly. Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL) and Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL) are Alliant Energy's two public energy companies. Alliant Energy is a component of the Nasdaq CRD Sustainability Index, Bloomberg’s Gender-Equality Index, and the S&P 500. For more information, visit alliantenergy.com and follow Alliant Energy on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.
About the Human Rights Campaign Foundation
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) people. Through its programs, the HRC Foundation seeks to make transformational change in the everyday lives of LGBTQ+ people, shedding light on inequity and deepening the public’s understanding of LGBTQ+ issues, with a clear focus on advancing transgender and racial justice. Its work has transformed the landscape for more than 15 million workers, 11 million students, 1 million clients in the adoption and foster care system and so much more. The HRC Foundation provides direct consultation and technical assistance to institutions and communities, driving the advancement of inclusive policies and practices; it builds the capacity of future leaders and allies through fellowship and training programs; and, with the firm belief that we are stronger working together, it forges partnerships with advocates in the U.S. and around the globe to increase our impact and shape the future of our work.