American Express (AmEx)

New York
Diversified Financials

Corprate Bias Ratings

Risk Level:

Rating - Caution
Medium Risk

American Express (AmEx) allegedly fired Nick Williams and his superiors allegedly due to diversity initiatives. The company vets vendors according to LGBTQ policies and is part of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, but has not publicly terminated business relationships based on views or beliefs. AmEx covers the cost of "medically necessary transition-related care" for its employees and their children. AmEx is a signatory of the Business Roundtable's 2019 Statement on the Purpose of Corporation, which promotes stakeholder capitalism. The company pledged $50 million to BLM and related causes, funds Planned Parenthood, and uses a product code for legal firearm purchases. AmEx is a founding corporate partner of the national LGBT Chamber of Commerce. For these reasons, American Express receives a "Medium Risk" rating.

Criteria
Risk Level
Rationale
Corporate Weaponization
Criteria

Has denied service to customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express is a member of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, which aims to demonetize advertisements and suppress content that “vilifies” individuals based on sexual orientation and gender identity, discusses “debated social issues in a negative or partisan context” or spreads “hate speech” (1)(2)(3). The company received a score of 100 on the Corporate Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign. Among other requirements, this means American Express has pledged to vet vendors based on pro-LGBTQ policies (4). American Express allegedly fired Nick Williams and his superiors due to diversity initiatives and a complaint from a minority-owned business (5). Otherwise, the company has not publicly terminated business relationships due to religious beliefs or political views.

Criteria

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express does not discriminate against religious organizations in its charitable giving (1)(2).

Criteria

Employment policies fail to protect against discrimination based on political affiliation/views and/or religion.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express provides viewpoint discrimination protection for employees (1).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy
Criteria

Uses corporate reputation to support ideological causes and/or organizations hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express has a perfect score on the HRC’s 2022 Corporate Equality Index. This score indicates the company covers the cost of “medically necessary transition-related care” for its employees and their children (1)(2). The company has signed open letters supporting the Equality Act and affirming transgender participation in women’s and girls’ sports (3)(4). AmEx Board members protested state voting integrity bills (5). AmEx has also imposed teachings on employees that said certain religious beliefs conferred different levels of privilege, and these radical lectures magnified divisions based on inherent characteristics and beliefs (6). The company opposed the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, which prohibits teaching gender identity and sexual orientation in schools to kids in K-3rd grade (7). AmEx utilizes a new product code for legal firearms, allowing for the potential tracking of legal gun purchases (8). American Express is a member of the OneTen coalition, meaning that the company has pledged to further emphasize race in hiring (9)(10). American Express CEO Stephen Squeri is a member of the Business Roundtable and signed its 2019 Statement on the Purpose of Corporation, which promotes stakeholder capitalism over traditional obligations to shareholders and customers (11)(12).

Criteria

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express has funded Planned Parenthood (1). AmEx is a member of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (2)(3)(4). The company also paid for critical race theory style seminars for its employees that said that “capitalism is evil,” among other things (5). American Express has pledged over $50 million to the Black Lives Matter movement and related causes (6)(7). The company is a founding corporate partner of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (8).

Criteria

Uses corporate political contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level
Rationale

American Express donates in a bipartisan matter (1).

All links were last accessed and all information was updated on:
June 17, 2023

Company reports are intended for educational use only. Full Disclaimer

Voting History

Date
ESG Category
Proponent
Summary of ResolutionMgmt RecTotal Vote % in Favor
5/2/23GovernanceKenneth SteinerRatification of Excessive Termination PayAgainst35.20%
5/2/23GovernanceKenneth SteinerShareholder Ratification of Excessive Termination PayAgainst35.20%
5/2/23SocialChange FinanceReport on Risks of Sharing Abortion-Related DataAgainst11.50%
5/2/23SocialChange Finance, P.B.C.Abortion & Consumer Data PrivacyAgainst11.50%
5/3/22GovernanceKenneth SteinerIndependent Board ChairAgainst22.20%
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