Social Responsible Shareholders Welcome Dover's More Inclusive Policy
BOSTON, MA - February 27, 2004 - A group of socially concerned shareholders
today welcomed Dover Corporation's decision to amend its nondiscrimination policy
to explicitly bar discrimination based on sexual orientation. Dover's decision
followed a request by institutional shareholders.
"Dover has made a good decision for its employees and its shareholders," stated Kenneth Scott, portfolio manager at Boston-based Walden Asset Management, the firm that led the investor initiative. "Hundreds of corporations have adopted inclusive nondiscrimination policies, which may provide a competitive advantage in recruiting and retaining employees from the widest pool of talent."
More than 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies, including 96 of the Fortune 100, explicitly bar discrimination based on sexual orientation, according to Human Rights Campaign. Industrial companies with such inclusive policies include General Electric, General Motors, Illinois Tool Works, 3M, Teleflex, and United Technologies.
"We believe inclusive non-discrimination policies will enhance Dover's long-term shareholder value by building its reputation as a fair employer," stated Amy Augustine, Associate Social Research Analyst for Calvert Funds, a leader in the social investment arena that participated in the investor dialogue.
National polls consistently find more than three-quarters of Americans support equal rights in the workplace for gay men, lesbians and bisexuals. Conversely, according to a September 2002 survey by Harris Interactive and Witeck-Combs, 41% of gay and lesbian workers in the United States reported an experience with some form of job discrimination related to sexual orientation.
"By explicitly barring discrimination based on sexual orientation, Dover will demonstrate a commitment to respect the basic human rights of all its employees, and will join a growing list of corporations that understand that guaranteeing equal opportunity for all employees is not only the right thing to do, but also makes good business sense," stated Michael Heflin, director of the OUTFront program at Amnesty International USA, which supported the investor initiative.
Fourteen states, including New York, and more than 150 cities and counties have laws prohibiting employment discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Walden Asset Management (www.waldenassetmgmt.com) is the socially responsive investment division of Boston Trust & Investment Management Company. Founded in 1975, Walden has been a pioneer in socially responsive portfolio management on behalf of individual and institutional clients. Walden blends a disciplined investment style and expertise in social screening with a commitment to using its leverage as an investor to improve corporate social performance.
Calvert is one of the Washington D.C. area's largest financial services firms with $9.9 billion in assets under management. Calvert funds, which include an extensive lineup of tax-free and taxable fixed income products and socially and environmentally screened funds, allow individual and institutional investors to pursue a broad range of investment objectives within a single fund family. Calvert also maintains the Calvert Social Indexä, a benchmark for measuring the performance of large, U.S.-based socially responsible companies. For more information on Calvert and its products and services, go to www.calvert.com. Calvert is part of the Acacia Group of companies, an affiliate of the Ameritas Acacia Companies.
Other members of the institutional investor coalition that approached Dover about its EEO policy include Women's Equity Mutual Fund, Swarthmore College, Community Church of New York, Funding Exchange, Manhattan Country School, and Needmor Fund.
CONTACT: Ken Scott, Walden, (617) 726-7003; Melinda Lovins, Calvert, (301) 657-7089