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Ohio Transit Authority extends benefits to promote inclusiveness

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Achieving greater inclusiveness and competing for talent were among the primary motivations for the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority's recent extension of health and dental benefits to same-sex and opposite-sex domestic partners.

“The most important thing for the board was that the employees asked for this,” said Jason Dunn, board chairman of the authority that operates the Metro public bus service in Cincinnati.

“Secondarily, it made good business sense to do it,” Mr. Dunn said. “As we seek to be an employer of choice, where we can retain our employees and attract new talent, it made best sense for us to move forward in this way.”

A spokeswoman for Metro said the expansion will add an estimated $233,000 in annual costs to the agency's health and dental insurance budget, about 57% of that amount being attributable to employees in opposite-sex domestic partnerships switching from single to family coverage.

Terry Crews Garcia, Metro's CEO and general manager, said the anticipated increase in costs — less than 3% of $9.1 million currently budgeted for employee health and dental benefits — is well worth the opportunity to accommodate a wider range of employees and elevate its profile as a progressive employer.

The agency intends to continue offering coverage to same-sex and opposite-sex domestic partners even if same-sex marriage is legalized in Ohio.

“That's motivated by our goals of providing both continuity of health care as well as equality in the benefits program,” Ms. Garcia said. “One of the focuses of the board and the Metro organization is inclusion and diversity, and ensuring that it's not just a theme or a campaign, but that it truly is practiced within our organizations.”

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