WILLIAMS TOWNSHIP, MI — Dow Corning Corp. has joined business groups in the Great Lakes Bay Region calling for Michigan's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity protections.

In July, the Great Lakes Bay Regional Alliance, Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce and Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce joined the Michigan Competitive Workforce Coalition, which calls for the addition of sexual orientation and gender identity protections under Michigan law.

Now, Dow Corning officials have joined the coalition.

Under Michigan's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, it is illegal to subject people to differential treatment based on religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status or marital status, and employers are prohibited from discriminating in hiring, compensation or the terms, conditions or privileges of employment.

Currently, sexual orientation and gender identity are not included under the law.

"As the global leader of an innovation-driven industry, Dow Corning understands the value of diversity and the importance of inclusion for all of its workforce," Mike Conway, senior vice president and chief human resources officer at Dow Corning, said in a prepared statement. "We encourage policies that respect individual rights and ensure equality while helping Michigan to compete in a 21st century economy."

Dave Dunn, chairman of the Great Lakes Bay Regional Alliance, said updating the law to protect people from discrimination based upon sexual orientation and/or gender identity would make Michigan more competitive.

"We want to support efforts to make Michigan the most business friendly state possible," Dunn said in a prepared statement. "The reality is that we are competing against neighboring states in the Midwest that give these equal protections. It's long overdue for Michigan to enact legislation to treat every employee in an equal and fair manner."

We asked readers with a poll whether updating Michigan law to include sexual orientation and gender identity protections would make the state more competitive in business. See the results so far and weigh in here.

Jim Murray, president of AT&T and co-chair of the Michigan Competitive Workforce Coalition, welcomed Dow Corning.

"Dow Corning has long been a sound policy voice here in Michigan," Murray said in a prepared statement. "Its involvement in this work demonstrates the good business sense it makes for the people of our state."

The Michigan Competitive Workforce Coalition's membership also includes: The Dow Chemical Co., Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Regional Chamber, Arbor Brewing, AT&T, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Chrysler Group LLC, Clark Hill PLC, Consumers Energy, Delta Airlines, Detroit Regional Chamber, Google, Grand Rapids Area of Commerce, Herman Miller, Irwin Seating Co., Issue Media Group, Kellogg Co., Macomb County Chamber of Commerce, Menlo Innovations, The Michigan Theater, PADNOS, Pfizer, Professional Property Management, Quicken Loans, Slow's Bar BQ, Steelcase, Southwest Michigan First, Strategic Staffing Solutions, Whirlpool Corp. and Zingerman's.

— Heather Jordan covers business for MLive/The Saginaw News/The Bay City Times. She can be reached at 989-450-2652 or hjordan@mlive.com. Follow her on Twitter and Facebook.