NYC Gazette

WPP Group USA, which is based in New York, earned a score of 100 in a ranking that evaluates the corporate non-discrimination policies based on “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.”

A total of 53 companies in New York received a rating of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index. Nationwide, 842 businesses received the maximum score, reflecting the rating’s evaluation that these are among the “best places” for LGBTQ+ members to work.

WPP Group USA is not on the Fortune 1000 list of large U.S. companies.

The CEI rating criteria are based on four categories: nondiscrimination policies, pledges of equal benefits for LGBTQ+ employees and their families, support for an inclusive workplace and “corporate social responsibility.”

Companies might be adhering to CEI policies to please their top shareholders and secure bonuses and board positions for themselves, the New York Post reported. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who has been called “the face” of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG), wrote in a 2018 letter to CEOs titled “A Sense of Purpose” that companies that fail to serve a social purpose “will ultimately lose the license to operate from key stakeholders.”

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, author of “Woke Inc.: Inside America’s Social Justice Scam,” said, “The big fund managers like BlackRock all embrace this ESG orthodoxy in how they apply pressure to top corporate management teams and boards and they determine, in many cases, executive compensation and bonuses and who gets re-elected or re-appointed to boards. They can make it very difficult for you if you don’t abide by their agendas.”

Prioritizing CEI rankings might not always bring the results executives are hoping for, as in the case of Anheuser-Busch’s promotion of Dylan Mulvaney, a 26-year-old TikTok star who transitioned from male to female in 2021 and has since raked in over $1 million in brand endorsements. Bud Light’s and Nike’s ad campaigns featuring Mulvaney drew criticism from stars like Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and Caitlyn Jenner, but Derek Kreifels, the co-founder and CEO of State Financial Officers Foundation, said the backlash may end up being more significant.

In the two weeks after Bud Light’s launch of the Mulvaney ad campaign, Anheuser-Busch’s value decreased by more than $5 billion, the New York Post reported.

The CEI ranking examines business-related activities such as education, training and accountability measures and how inclusive they are.

A total of 1,200 companies, both privately and publicly held, participated in the survey in 2022. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation initiated the survey in 2002.

Employer	Headquarters Location	State	2022 CEI Rating	Fortune 1000 Rank?
1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.	Carle Place	NY	85	No
Accenture	New York	NY	100	No
AIG	New York	NY	100	Yes
Amalgamated Bank	New York	NY	100	No
AMC Networks	New York	NY	70	Yes
American Express Company	New York	NY	100	Yes
Arconic	New York	NY	100	Yes
Arup US, Inc.	New York	NY	100	No
Ascena	New York	NY	100	Yes
Barclays	New York	NY	100	No
BlackRock	New York	NY	100	Yes
Bloomberg LP	New York	NY	100	No
BNP Paribas	New York	NY	100	No
Bristol Myers Squibb	New York	NY	100	Yes
Cahill Gordon & Reindel	New York	NY	95	No
CannonDesign	New York	NY	95	No
Capri Holdings Limited	New York	NY	90	No
Chobani	Norwich	NY	100	No
Consolidated Edison, Inc.	New York	NY	85	Yes
Corning	Corning	NY	100	Yes
Danone North America	White Plains	NY	100	No
Dentsu International	New York	NY	100	No
Deutsche Bank	New York	NY	100	No
Equitable	New York	NY	100	Yes
Federal Reserve Bank New York	New York	NY	100	No
Fox Corporation	New York	NY	75	Yes
Hachette Book Group	New York	NY	90	No
Hiscox USA	New York	NY	95	No
HSBC USA	New York	NY	100	No
IAC/InterActiveCorp.	New York	NY	100	Yes
Icahn Enterprises LP	New York	NY	0	Yes
Integral Ad Science, Inc.	New York	NY	100	No
International Flavors & Fragrances	New York	NY	100	Yes
J. Crew Group, LLC	New York	NY	100	Yes
Kobre & Kim	New York	NY	100	No
Kroll, LLC	New York	NY	90	No
LexisNexis Legal & Professional	New York	NY	100	No
Macmillan Learning	New York	NY	100	No
Macmillan Publishing Group	New York	NY	100	No
Mastercard	Purchase	NY	100	Yes
Morgan Stanley	New York	NY	100	Yes
MSL	New York	NY	100	No
MUFG Union Bank, N.A.	New York	NY	100	No
New York Life Insurance Company	New York	NY	100	Yes
NFP	New York	NY	90	No
Nielsen	New York City	NY	100	No
Nomura	New York	NY	100	No
Omnicom Group	New York	NY	100	Yes
Oscar Health, Inc.	New York	NY	95	No
Publicis Health	New York	NY	100	No
Publicis Media	New York	NY	100	No
Publicis NY	New York	NY	100	No
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals	Tarrytown	NY	20	Yes
Scotiabank USA	New York	NY	100	No
Siemens Healthineers USA	Tarrytown	NY	100	No
Société Générale	New York	NY	100	No
Sony Corporation America	New York	NY	100	No
Sony Music Entertainment	New York	NY	90	No
Squarespace	New York	NY	95	No
Standard Chartered	New York	NY	100	No
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation	New York	NY	100	No
Thornton Tomasetti, Inc.	New York	NY	90	No
TIAA	New York	NY	100	Yes
TowerBrook Capital Partners	New York	NY	100	No
ViacomCBS	New York	NY	100	Yes
Voya Financial	New York	NY	100	Yes
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz	New York	NY	90	No
Warby Parker	New York	NY	100	No
Warner Music Group	New York	NY	100	No
WPP Group USA	New York	NY	100	No
Wunderkind Corporation	New York	NY	100	No