Restaurant Brands International (RBI)

Rating Overview

Restaurant Brands International (RBI) is Medium Risk.

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (RBI) often 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. RBI occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium 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	Lower 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:

Medium

Rationale:

RBI received a score of 85 on the 2025 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 integrates ESG into its business practices. From its 2025 Restaurant Brands For Good Report: “To drive
performance, ESG metrics are also linked to annual
employee performance incentives for relevant
employees across our business” (3). However, RBI has not canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (4).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

RBI’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). The company does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (3).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

RBI’s HRC 2025 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). The company offers implicit bias training to its employees (3). RBI appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its recruitment and hiring. From its 2023 Restaurant Brands For Good Report: “Since 2022, we have set a goal of having at least 50% of all final round candidates for any role at our corporate offices and our field teams be demonstrably diverse” (4). The company does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (5).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

RBI is committed to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 (1). The company supports DEI within its business practices. From its Diversity Commitments Web Page: “A dedicated group within our People team implements our diversity and inclusion initiatives and our executive committee of three is accountable for tracking our diversity and inclusivity goals and informing our CEO of our progress” (2). RBI supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2025 Restaurant Brands For Good Report: “As we build on our existing reporting and continue advancing our commitment to being transparent on our ESG priorities, management approaches, and performance, Restaurant Brands International has published its GRI and SASB disclosure frameworks for the financial year ended December 31, 2025” (3). In response to the Black Lives Matter movement, RBI’s corporate office announced that it would be instituting diversity hiring quotas, including for people of certain ethnic identities (4). In 2022, Burger King released a promotional “Pride Whopper” with two top or two bottom buns to promote “equal love and equal rights” (5)(6).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

RBI’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company provides a benefits package for employees which includes some transgender medical benefits for covered employees and dependents, including children. This may include paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. 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). In June 2021, Burger King announced in a tweet that it would be donating a portion of proceeds from chicken sandwich sales during LGBTQ Pride Month “even on Sundays” to the HRC, resulting in donations of $250,000 (3). RBI ensures that donations to its foundation will go to a wide variety of organizations, “including women, Black, Indigenous, people of color and those who identify as LGBTQ+” (4). Burger King is a Signature Partner of the Urban League of Broward County, Florida and a corporate partner of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (5)(6). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of RBI using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (7).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

RBI does not operate a PAC at this time and has not used its lobbying for ideological purposes (1)(2)(3).