HONOLULU - The Family Equality Coalition, a Hawaii-based organization dedicated to securing equal marriage rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and their families, and the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBT civil rights organization with more than 2,500 supporters in Hawaii, delivered research to state senators on Tuesday showing that many of Hawaii's major employers offer the same types of benefits to their employees as would be granted with civil unions. The research was summarized in a flier distributed to businesses and offices. Click here to view the flier.

"As expected, Hawaii's business community is light years ahead of its government policy on offering benefits to same-sex couples," said Tambry Young, a local Oahu business owner. "This is not only an issue of civil rights, but one of economic sustainability and growth for our state."

Many Hawaii businesses, including a majority of Fortune 500 companies, offer spousal benefits to same-sex partners to better attract, recruit and retain a more diverse and talented workforce. The state of Hawaii, like many other states, has had difficulties retaining home-grown talent. Demographers have found that the new generation of highly desirable workers is likely to choose where they want to live before looking for a job, and they cite diversity and inclusion as one of the key factors in their decision.

Some Employers who Offer Same-Sex Couple Benefits:

Source: Human Rights Campaign Foundation, Workplace Project

The Family Equality Coalition is dedicated to securing equal marriage rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their families in Hawaii. We envision a Hawaii in which gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their families have full equality in all areas of the law.

The Human Rights Campaign is America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.