Sure, we’re worth it. But headlines make it sound like Google is simply compensating their gay and lesbian employees for being more fabulous.
Google announced it will offset a tax liability same-sex couples incur that opposite-sex couples do not, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
When a company offers domestic partnership benefits, those perks — such as health insurance for a partner — are taxable as income.
When I looked at the cost of going on my domestic partner’s health insurance, it would have been more expensive than buying a policy for myself as an individual. The domestic partner “benefit” amounted to an almost $200-per-month penalty.
Google is doing something about it. The company is paying the tax penalty incurred by gay and lesbian employees by increasing their compensation.
