General Electric - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

General Electric is High Risk.

General Electric (GE) is High Risk. The company yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. GE embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Lower Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	High Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	High Risk
Political Actions	High Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled 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:

Lower

Rationale:

GE’s HRC 2023-2024 CEI rating indicates 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). However, GE has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (3).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

GE’s HRC CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). GE Appliances, a subsidiary of GE, likely uses Benevity as its charitable giving platform. Benevity vets charities according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hate List, which includes mainstream libertarian, conservative, family, and religious advocacy organizations (3)(4)(5).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

GE’s HRC 2023-2024 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 a specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). GE Vernova, a subsidiary of GE, offers allyship and disrupting bias training to its employees (3). GE protects its employees against viewpoint discrimination (4).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

GE’s HRC 2023-2024 CEI rating indicates the company agrees to allow a controversial stakeholder group focused on sexual identity issues to dictate marketing or advertising strategy. By doing so, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company signed an open letter endorsing the Equality Act, a contentious proposal to amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act by adding sexual orientation and so-called gender identity as protected categories. The legislation would, among other implications, grant biological men access to women-only spaces such as sports teams and public restrooms, and compel healthcare providers to deliver sex-denying healthcare (3). GE made a statement in opposition to Georgia’s voting reform bill (4). The company signed an amicus brief in opposition to the 2016 North Carolina bathroom bill HB2, which required people to use the bathroom of their biological sex (5). GE Vernova, a subsidiary of GE, supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2023 Sustainability Report: “ESG issues including Climate Change, Health, Safety & Well-being, and Product Design & Life Cycle Management have been consistently identified as material issues for GE Vernova in previous and current assessments” (6). GE Vernova supports DEI within its business practices. From its 2023 Sustainability Report: “Our global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) program, led by our Chief Diversity Officer, is rooted in the belief that diversity makes us more competitive and creates value for our stakeholders” (7). GE Vernova is committed to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 (8).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

GE’s HRC 2023-2024 CEI rating indicates the company provides a benefits package for employees that covers transgender medical procedures for covered employees and dependents, including children. This includes 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. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). GE has enabled employees to donate to Planned Parenthood directly from their paychecks (3). The company has also allegedly donated to Planned Parenthood via donations to the United Way (4)(5). According to its internal annual and sustainability reports, GE does not currently donate to ideological groups, including Planned Parenthood (6)(7). GE is a corporate partner of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (8). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (9).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

GE’s HRC 2023-2024 CEI rating indicates the company publicly advocated for controversial sex and gender ideology through local, state or federal legislation or initiatives. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). GE has not used its PAC donations or lobbying for ideological purposes (3)(4)(5).