More and less. (Benefits).

More workplaces than ever are offering domestic-partner health insurance benefits, according to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's WorkNet project. The number of employers extending equal benefits increased by almost 4% between August 2001 and March 31, going from 4,285 to 4,446.

One company that isn't on the list is communications giant Alltel, which provides basic telephone service in several Midwestern and Eastern states as well as cellular phone service. On May 2 shareholders voted against amending its employment policy to specifically prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.

ExxonMobil tried to dodge a vote on the same issue, though the Securities and Exchange Commission assured that stockholders will be able to vote on a similar proposal May 29. Diane Bratcher, head of the gay rights group Equality Project, has been working for the past four years to change the policy--she targeted Exxon even before its 1999 merger with Mobil, which led to the scrapping of Mobil's gay-inclusive policy. Bratcher says pressure will continue to build on the oil giant, which (unlike five other major oil companies) does not have an explicit gay-inclusive nondiscrimination policy: "We're hoping that with rime the company will realize that this is absurd and that they're giving the wrong message."