Defense Contractor Welcomes Gays

Today's Boston Globe has a great story about Raytheon - the nation's fifth largest defense contractor - and its stepped up efforts to diversify the workforce. As one story illustrates, Raytheon, unlike the military it gets many of its contracts from, is anxious to put out the welcome mat for gays and lesbians:

"When Raytheon software engineer Louise Young and her partner wanted a civil union in 2001, her employer did something unexpected in the conservative defense industry: It temporarily moved her to a division in Sudbury, Vt., so they could realize their dream.

The Waltham-based defense giant considered Young too important an asset to lose."

"We don't want to overlook any talent pool," said Linda Taylor , senior manager of diversity, work life, and inclusion at Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson . "We can't waste any human resource."

If only the U.S. armed forces were so forward thinking. Instead, the military continues to dismiss 2 LGBT people every day. No doubt, many of them end up in supportive work environments like Raytheon, utilizing the skills they obtained while serving our country.

Raytheon deserves kudos for its efforts to welcome gay and lesbian employees. Let's hope the rest of the defense world - including the Department of Defense - sits up and takes notice.

- Steve Ralls