ATLANTA, April 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air
Lines (NYSE: DAL) announced updates to its health benefits policy
to assist employees in same-sex relationships.
Effective immediately, employees who cover same sex domestic
partners under Delta's healthcare plans will no longer be
responsible for any federal or state income or payroll tax burden
associated with this coverage. Instead, Delta will pay those taxes
on behalf of these employees retroactive to Jan. 1, 2015. This will result in parity of
the cost of health care coverage between same-sex domestic partners
and employees in legally recognized marriages regardless of U.S.
location.
During the last two years, many states have begun to recognize
same sex marriage. This month, the United States Supreme Court will
hear oral arguments on and decide whether same-sex marriage bans
are prohibited by the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of equal
protection under the law. A ruling is due by the end of June.
"While this issue remains unsettled on a national level, Delta's
commitment to diversity, inclusion and respect is rooted deeply in
the airline's values and culture," said Joanne Smith, Delta's Executive Vice President
and Chief Human Resources Officer. "By providing equality in this
critically important area of benefit costs for employees with
same-sex domestic partners, we will continue to build a great place
to work."
In addition to the airline's announcement, Delta also recently
participated in a brief urging the Court to support marriage
equality.
On a global scale, Delta is committed to maintaining and
supporting a culture of inclusion. As the largest employer in
Georgia and one of the largest
employers in Minnesota, Delta
extends domestic partner benefits to its employees, including
health, dental and life insurance, as well as pension and flight
benefits.
Throughout the years, Delta and its employees have continued to
build and expand its strong relationship with the LGBT community
around the world. Delta supports regional Pride events in cities
nationwide including Atlanta,
Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York City and Seattle with hundreds of employees marching to
raise money and awareness for HIV/AIDS. Delta continues to be a
proud underwriter of the GLAAD Media Awards and Platinum sponsor
for the Atlanta HRC Dinner. Delta is the official airline of amfAR,
the Foundation for AIDS Research, one of the most recognized and
important organizations fighting the AIDS epidemic worldwide.
Additionally, Delta employees actively support and participate in
DEEN, the Delta Employee Equality Network, a voluntary organization
committed to making Delta the best place to work by promoting
inclusion, respect for differences, equal opportunity and diversity
in the workplace.
About Delta
Delta Air Lines serves more than 170 million customers each
year. Delta was named to FORTUNE magazine's top 50 World's Most
Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired
airline for the fourth time in five years. Additionally, Delta has
ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for
four consecutive years, a first for any airline. With an
industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection
carriers offer service to 321 destinations in 58 countries on six
continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees
worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft.
The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and
participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture
with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a newly formed joint
venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance
partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights,
with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston,
Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New
York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle
and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport
facilities, global products, services and technology to enhance the
customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional
information is available on delta.com, Twitter @Delta,
Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog
takingoff.delta.com.
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SOURCE Delta Air Lines