Wal-Mart to begin offering benefits to domestic partners, regardless of sexual orientation

Wal-Mart, the largest employer of rural Americans, "told workers this week that it will begin offering health insurance benefits to the domestic partners of U.S. employees next year," Shelly Banjo reports for The Wall Street Journal. "The extension of health benefits marks a major change for the country's largest private employer of 1.3 million U.S. workers, which has been targeted by gay-rights advocacy groups for failing to do so. Previously, Wal-Mart had offered benefits to the domestic partners of employees in states that required the retailer to do so by law."

To qualify for the benefits "employees and their domestic partners, regardless of their sexual orientation, must live together for at least a year and engage in an ongoing, exclusive and committed relationship," Banjo reports. "The company says it won't ask employees for verification but will act on an honor system." Wal-Mart, which is also extending vision coverage to its employees, "has faced criticism in recent years for the number of workers that can't afford or qualify for coverage due to rapidly-increasing premiums and the retailer's decision to spike benefits from employees who work fewer than 30 hours in recent years. At one time, it offered health-care coverage to all part-time employees." (Read more)