As the Director of Human Resources at Fry’s Food and Drug Stores, I’m committed to recruiting and retaining the talent we need to serve our customers and communities with excellence.  One of the ways I do that is to ensure we are creating an inclusive environment for our employees and customers alike. 

In my experience, the best way we can create an inclusive culture is to lead by example.

When it comes to our LGBTQ employees there is no exception.  We recently received approval to start a LGBTQ employee ARG group, we attend and recruit at PRIDE events across the state and at LGBTQ job fairs, and members of our management team recently participated in ONE Community’s UNITY Institute to better learn how to implement inclusive practices.  Being inclusive is not just the right thing to do, but it ensures we remove any artificial barriers to attracting and retaining the very best. 

This month, Phoenix-based start-up Tuft & Needle signed the UNITY Pledge in support of fully inclusive non-discrimination policies in the workplace, housing, and public accommodations for all Arizonans, including gay and transgender people. Tuft & Needle joins over 1,900 businesses and organizations including GoDaddy, Fry’s Food & Drug Stores, Yelp, Uber, Professional Firefighters of Arizona, PetSmart, and Coca-Cola in supporting a fully inclusive Arizona.