Dropbox

California
Cloud & Data Storage

Corprate Bias Ratings

Risk Level:

Rating - Danger
High Risk

Dropbox scored a 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) Corporate Equality Index (CEI). By complying with Human Rights Campaign's controversial demands, Dropbox, a file hosting service, increases the risk of dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders. The company covers transgender-related medical costs for its employees and their children and provides specific sexual orientation and gender identity-based benefits. It also uses sex and gender ideology criteria in employee recruitment, vendor selection, marketing, and philanthropic support. Dropbox forces employees to undergo multiple ideological trainings and uses its reputation, corporate funds, and political influence to support controversial sex and gender ideologies, organizations, and legislation. Dropbox does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees. A company executive publicly stated she prioritized people of color in the hiring process. However, Dropbox has not publicly terminated business relationships based on views or beliefs. Dropbox signed a public letter opposing a proposed religious freedom law in Missouri and has pledged support to BLM and related causes. The company supports the Equality Act and has opposed anti-LGBTQ legislation. Dropbox offers support for its employees to receive gender affirming healthcare but has not used its political contributions for ideological purposes. The company opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces. Dropbox denounced various states’ legislative efforts to protect election integrity and security. For these reasons, Dropbox receives a High 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

Dropbox received a score of 100 on the 2023 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit (1)(2). The company’s Senior Director of Product Design Jasmin Friedl stated that she was “prioritizing” people of color in hiring practices (3).

Criteria

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

Risk Level
Rationale

Dropbox’s HRC CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). Dropbox does not appear to discriminate against religious organizations in its charitable giving. The company focuses on funding organizations that support, environmental sustainability, foster care, and other human rights missions (3)(4).

Criteria

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

Risk Level
Rationale

Dropbox’s HRC 2023 CEI rating indicates the company forces employees to attend multiple, controversial trainings on gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender issues, and divisive racial ideology. The company provides gender transition guidelines for its employees and specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). Dropbox does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (3).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy
Criteria

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

Risk Level
Rationale

Dropbox was one of the many companies in 2016 to sign a public letter opposing a proposed religious freedom law in Missouri (1). The company signed an open letter in support of the Equality Act and opposed the protections of female sports (2)(3). Dropbox opposed the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, which would prohibit teaching gender identity and sexual orientation to kids in K-3rd grade (4). The company regularly supports LGBTQ Pride (5). Dropbox opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (6). The company’s HRC 2023 CEI rating indicates the company agrees to allow a controversial stakeholder group focused on sexual identity issues to dictate marketing or advertising strategy (7)(8). By doing so, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders. Dropbox denounced various states’ legislative efforts to protect election integrity and security (9).

Criteria

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

Risk Level
Rationale

Dropbox’s HRC 2023 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. Additionally, the company has pledged philanthropic support of at least one organization or event that promotes sex and gender ideology (1)(2). By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders. The company pledged $500,000 to the Black Lives Matter movement and related causes (3)(4). Dropbox also offers employees up to a $10,000 allowance to “obtain care that is not available in their home state, including gender affirmation surgery” (5).

Criteria

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

Risk Level
Rationale

Dropbox’s HRC 2023 CEI rating indicates the company publicly advocated for controversial sex and gender ideology through local, state or federal legislation or initiatives (1)(2). By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders. Dropbox has not used its PAC donations or lobbied for ideological purposes (3)(4)(5).

All links were last accessed and all information was updated on:
March 8, 2024

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