United Airlines has become the first public company to be inducted into Pride Live’s Stonewall Ambassador programme in recognition of its commitment to LGBTQ+ equality. Highlights of initiatives at the airline include 1999, when it became the first US airline to fully recognise domestic partnerships, to becoming the first US airline to offer non-binary gender options throughout all booking channels earlier this year. The latest honour took place at Pride Live’s Stonewall Day, a celebration for the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots, which also included a live outdoor concert produced by iHeartMedia New York.
“At United, we recognise, embrace and celebrate the individualism that make our customers and employees unique. We have long believed it’s important to support the LGBTQ+ community by upholding inclusive policies and practices, and are honoured to be the first public company recognised as a Stonewall Ambassador from Pride Live, along with an extraordinary group of trailblazers,” said Jill Kaplan, president of New York / New Jersey for United Airlines, who represented the company at the induction ceremony along with members of EQUAL, United’s resource group for LGBTQ+ and ally coworkers.
United joins a long list of Stonewall Ambassadors including new inductees: The Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton; Donatella Versace, chief artistic director of Versace; Bozoma Saint John, chief marketing officer of William Morris Endeavor; Conchita Wurat, global LGBTQ+ activist and recording artist; Stuart Vevers, executive creative director of Coach; Samira Wiley, activist and actor; and current members such as Chelsea Clinton, Laverne Cox, Robbie Rogers, Anna Wintour, Geena Rocero and Cleve Jones, among others.
“The United team is committed to doing more than just raising the flag for Pride in June — we’re committed to creating an inclusive work environment for all of our employees regardless of race, colour, creed, background, religious belief, origin and/or sexual orientation while contributing to the diverse communities we serve,” added Jill Kaplan.
You can see United’s LGBTQ+ initiatives in action in our Videos section.
Fully inclusive equal employment, workplace benefits and non-discrimination policies are core to United’s Working Together culture. United has earned a 100% rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index and has been named Best Place to Work for eight consecutive years. The airline has also been named a Top Company for LGBT Equality by Work Life Matters magazine. In 2018 and 2019, United was named one of the ‘Best-of-the-Best”‘ corporations for its commitment to diversity and inclusion across all communities by The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) in partnership with the National Business Inclusion Consortium (NBIC) and in May 2019, was honoured by DiversityInc with their ‘DiversityInc Top 50’ designation, recognising the airline’s leadership in promoting diversity through a diversity-focused talent pipeline and talent development, leadership accountability and a top supplier diversity program.
Diana Rodriguez, founder of Pride Live added, “As a social advocacy and community engagement platform for the LGBTQ+ community, Stonewall Day is a day to remember how far we have come and how much work we have left to do to accelerate awareness and eliminate the social intolerance that is profoundly impacting the lives of LGBTQ+ citizens both here and abroad. We are pleased to welcome United Airlines as a Stonewall Ambassador and grateful for their support of Stonewall Day, which brings multi-generational LGBTQ+ communities and allies together to actively advance the Stonewall legacy and the fight for full LGBTQ+ equality.”