Outdoor Research - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Outdoor Research is High Risk.

Outdoor Research is High Risk. The company yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. Outdoor Research 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	High Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Lower Risk
Employment Protection	Lower Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	Medium Risk
Funding	Medium Risk
Political Actions	No Data

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:

High

Rationale:

Outdoor Research fired an employee after a social media influencer at a rival company claimed that this employee had been racist to him, though the claimant made no specific allegations of what the employee had done (1)(2). The employee quickly filed a lawsuit against the influencer and The North Face (3)(4). Outdoor Research paused advertising on Facebook and Instagram in July 2020 due to “a lack of effort and accountability from Facebook, Inc. to address the proliferation of hate speech, racism, and disinformation” (5).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

Outdoor Research does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs. Outdoor Research’s charitable giving focuses on “creat[ing] safe, accessible, and equitable outdoor spaces for current and future generations” (1).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

Outdoor Research protects its employees against viewpoint discrimination (1).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Outdoor Research has committed to public advocacy for or engagement with LGBTQ causes, namely by publishing an article about how to engage and support queer youth (1).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Outdoor Research partners with Women’s Wilderness, which “support[s] girls, women, and LGBTQ+ people in accessing their power and improving their health through connections to the outdoors and community” (1). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of Outdoor Research using its corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (2)(3).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

N/A

Rationale:

Outdoor Research does not operate a PAC at this time and has not reported on its lobbying (1)(2)(3).