Some employers are satisfied with a requirement that the partners sign a written statement of their relationship. Some employers may require proof of some financial relationship, such as a joint lease or mortgage or copies of tax returns showing financial interdependence. Whatever documentation is required must be germane to the issue of validating a domestic partnership, or it could lead to claims of invasion of privacy. However, most public attention focusing on domestic partner benefits involves employers that offer health insurance coverage to domestic partners. The Human Rights Campaign Fund, which describes itself as the largest national lesbian and gay political organization in the United States, had identified 2,856 employers that offered domestic partner benefits as of Aug. 6, 1999.
Many employers have a formal policy against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
The decision to offer domestic partner benefits communicates to employees that the employer is committed to its stated policy. The attraction to employees of a comprehensive benefits package that offers health and retirement coverage is well documented. In today's tight labor market, designing a benefits package that appeals to a diverse work force enables an employer to maintain a recruitment edge and communicates to employees that the employer values a diverse work force. Employee morale and productivity have been found to improve in work environments where individuals believe the employer demonstrates that it values its employees. Hewitt Associates, in a 1994 study of domestic partner benefits, found that only 2 percent to 3 percent or less of all employees offered domestic partner coverage in the health plan actually elected to take it.