A group of IBM employees constructed a petition urging IBM CEO Ginni Rometty to consider five tasks related to President Donald Trump, diversity hiring and retirement plans.
The employees recently visited the IBM Watson Center in New York City to present their petition, reports Computer Business Review. The online petition calls on Ms. Rometty to "affirm IBM values" like diversity, inclusiveness and ethical business conduct.
The petition also criticizes an open letter Ms. Rometty wrote to President Trump on Nov. 14, 2016. The letter, which detailed six suggestions for stimulating U.S. economic growth, has been criticized as a tacit endorsement of President Trump, according to Computer Business Review. "Congratulations on your election as the 45th president of the United States," she wrote. "I know that you are committed to help America's economy grow in ways that are good for all its people."
Here are the five demands IBM employees had for Ms. Rometty.
1. Allow IBM employees to refuse to participate in U.S. contracts that violate constitutional and civil liberties.
2. Double diversity recruitment for women, people of color and LGBT individuals in 2017.
3. Restrict IBM and its employees from using properties owned or branded under the Trump name for business purposes.
4. Restore the 2015 Individual Separation Allowance Plan, which provided severance pay based on years of employment, rather than a standard plan.
5. Implement 401k match contributions on regular pay cycles, rather than IBM's current one-time contribution at the end of the year.
The petition has garnered 2,148 signatures at the time of publication.
Click here to view the full petition.