Fannie Mae (FNM/NYSE), the nation’s largest source of financing for home mortgages, was ranked third overall for its socially responsible business practices among 320 leading U.S.-based companies evaluated by the Council on Economic Priorities (CEP).

The results are printed in CEP’s 2000 edition of Shopping for a Better World: A Quick and Easy Guide to Socially Responsible Shopping. The book allows consumers to compare companies in seven corporate responsibility issue areas, providing information that empowers consumers to "cast their economic vote as conscientiously as their political vote." Fannie Mae ranked among the top 3 out of 320 companies evaluated by CEP in terms of career advancement for women and minorities, and on overall attention to workplace issues. It ranked in the top ten for the level and quality of its family benefits.

"Fannie Mae works hard to create a diverse workplace that helps support employees at all stages of their lives and careers, and we’re pleased that the Council on Economic Priorities rankings reflect that effort," said Jamie Gorelick, vice chair of Fannie Mae. "Just as importantly, the company’s record of 13 consecutive years of double-digit growth in operating earnings shows that a company can act responsibly and still deliver value to its shareholders."

The CEP evaluation methodology grades companies in seven key areas, including disclosure; women’s advancement; minority advancement; workplace issues; family benefits; and corporate giving. Fannie Mae received high marks in all relevant categories. For example, in the minority advancement category, Fannie Mae ranked second for the representation of minorities at all levels of the company. Minorities make up 40.6 percent of Fannie Mae’s total workforce and 23.2 percent of its management group.

In the area of workplace issues, which includes benefits, policies, and programs offered to assist and enrich employees in their work, as well as their lives in general, Fannie Mae offers: 100 percent reimbursement for college tuition; an employer-assisted housing benefit that provides workers a forgiveable loan to help cover down payment and closing costs on the purchase of a home after only 90 days of employment; an emergency child care center; and an on-site elder care consultant.

The CEP also ranked the company highly for its charitable giving. The ranking includes a company’s cash gifts and in-kind contributions, such as Fannie Mae’s 10 hours of paid time off granted to employees each month so they can volunteer in their communities. Grades for all of the companies surveyed are available on the group’s Web site, at http://www.cepnyc.org.

The Council on Economic Priorities, founded in 1969, is a nonprofit public service research organization dedicated to accurate and impartial analysis of the social and environmental records of corporations.

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