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[[Meet GEs GLBTA Alliance] [♫Music♫]]
[[Greg Hyland, GE Avaition] I pursued a job at GE for a number of reasons ]
[including a place where I could be out in the workplace.]
[[Arijit Dasgupta, GE Asset Management] I grew up in Calcutta.]
[Of course, I was not out when I was in India because when I was growing up,]
[nobody even talked about sexuality.]
[Nobody talked about what homosexuality means.]
[[Rachelle Fuller, GE Energy] I had a lot of fears in coming out to my family,]
[and how it would impact them as well.]
[[Raul Rebak, GE Global Research] I imagine I was never in the closet.]
[I have had my domestic partner for almost 20 years now.]
[[Eric Santamaria, GE Healthcare] I met my husband, Steve, just over 8 years ago.]
[Our families have been extremely supportive throughout our entire relationship,]
[which has been a very fortunate, a huge blessing for us.]
[[Melanie Glennon, GE Energy] I've been with Debra for 5 1/2 years,]
[and hopefully, we'll get married in the next year.]
[[Liz Satterfield, GE Healthcare] I cannot imagine preparing for my wedding]
[if I wasn't out at work. Just like everybody, I wanted to celebrate my life.]
[[Matt Brooks, GE Corporate] When I first started at GE, I didn't really talk to much about ]
[my personal life, and I played the--what we called the pronoun game until one day]
[my coworkers said to me that we kind of know that you're gay. ]
[We think it's okay, so you shouldn't be afraid to be out yourself.]
[When you make the work environment more open and accepting for GLBT employees,]
[they're much more productive because they're much more comfortable.]
[They don't have to think about something else also other than their work.]
[Once I started job hunting, I targeted GE as my next employer.]
[Their support and inclusiveness was important to me as an employer of my choice.]
[A company that's open and gives you freedom to work and also you get freedom]
[I think that I'm more empowered.]
[I think I'm more confident in myself.]
[I definitely saw those differences after I came out of the closet,]
[and especially being an executive where I am much more visible than somebody who's not.]
[The GLBTA Alliance stands for the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender ]
[and straight Allies Alliance.]
[An ally is anybody who supports the GLBTA community, ]
[but is potentially not a specific member.]
[It's for people who want to show support for diversity in GE in anyway shape or form.]
[It creates an environment to have a dialogue.]
[A place that's conducive for the conversation or to ask questions or to learn more.]
[We also have several different professional development events, recruiting events.]
[[Tom Quick, GE Power & Water] As a straight GE employee ]
[and as an Human Resources Leader in GE, I'm proud to be an ally of GLBTA Alliance.]
[Today I live in New York with my significant other.]
[I'm out at work. I'm out with my family.]
[My vision is, I think, outside of work that I can hold Debra's hand ]
[and the straight not worry about it,]
[and some of that's happening today but not everywhere.]
[The instance I met Steve I knew that he was someone exceptional.]
[This is a shot of just after our parents had given us a toast.]
[This is the 21st Century and the strive for talent globally is important in any company,]
[and certainly is paramount in GE.]
[For GE, at the end of the day, it's not about if you're black, if you're white, if you're Latino,]
[if you're gay, if you're a lesbian.]
[It isn't about that. It's about your ideas.]
[We want people who think differently, and in order to do that, we have to be open ]
[Without diverse perspectives, GE couldn't be a leader in innovation.]
[[GLBTA Alliance] [Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender and Allies]]
