Resource Interactive CEO Testifies Before Congress in Favor of ENDA |
Nancy Kramer Offers Small Business Owner Viewpoint
WASHINGTON, D.C. — September 5, 2007 —Resource Interactive founder and CEO Nancy Kramer testified before the House of Representatives Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee, bringing her point of view as a small business owner to H.R. 2015, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. ENDA would ban workplace discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees.
"Passing ENDA will not create a burden on businesses, large or small," said Kramer. "Instead, it will ensure that hardworking GLBT Americans can earn a living, provide for their families and contribute to the innovation and creativity that makes American business great. Everyone should be free to live on the outside as they live on the inside.”
Kramer was asked to be part of a group supporting ENDA by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest GLBT civil rights organization. Resource Interactive, a long time supporter of the HRC, offers domestic partner benefits and includes sexual orientation in the company’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy.
ENDA is sponsored by Reps. Barney Frank, D-Mass.; Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio; Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; and Christopher Shays, R-Conn. It is currently legal to fire workers on the basis of their sexual orientation in 31 states and on the basis of gender identity and expression in 39 states. Corporate America has already taken significant steps toward this goal, with almost 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies now including sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies.
Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, also submitted written testimony to the subcommittee.
"It is time for a federal law that would make it illegal to fire a GLBT person just because of who they are," said Solmonese. "ENDA will bring the value of meritocracy to a community that has had to do without it for too long."
Rob Pettit, Director of Client Services at Resource and Columbus representative to the HRC Board of Governors, said, “Kramer is willing to step forward on a national stage and share her philosophy with Congress about the importance of creating a safe and welcoming workplace. It speaks volumes about Resource as a values-driven organization.”
"One’s sexual orientation or gender identity simply must not bar a person from the opportunity to achieve his or her potential, to support her family or to contribute to his or her community," continued Solmonese. "Civil rights laws have improved job opportunities for millions of Americans, raising standards of living and providing hope of a better future for each successive generation. ENDA will bring the GLBT community, at last, under the protection of federal civil rights law. The time has come to pass it."
Read the complete testimonies of Nancy Kramer and Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese as submitted to Congress and watch an archived webcast of the hearing for more information.
About Resource Interactive
Resource Interactive is one of the nation’s preeminent digital marketing agencies, helping Fortune 500 companies thrive in the evolving internet economy with award-winning digital strategy, creative and technology solutions. Known for its revolutionizing consumer insights, leading edge interactive design and technological innovation, Resource Interactive is ranked among the top twenty independent interactive agencies in the nation.
Unique in the industry as female-founded, owned and operated, Resource Interactive has grown over its 25-year history from its first marketing relationship with Apple to ongoing partnerships with clients such as Procter & Gamble, Hewlett-Packard, Wal-Mart, The Coca-Cola Company, Victoria’s Secret, Sherwin-Williams and L.L. Bean, among others. For more information, visit www.resource.com.
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Contact: Holly N. Davis
Media Relations Manager
614 621 2888 phone
614 621 2873 fax
hdavis@resource.com