From The Bay Area Reporter: http://www.ebar.com/columns/column.php?sec=guest_op&article=404
by Selisse Berry
01/31/2013
“Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law.”
Those words, spoken by President Barack Obama during his 2013 Inaugural Address last week, give me great hope that we will soon see an executive order prohibiting all federal contractors, regardless of size, from discriminating against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the workplace. The order would extend basic workplace protections to between 11 and 16 million people in the United States, according to a report by the Williams Institute.
Now that marriage equality has made it to the U.S. Supreme Court, it is time to address the real need for workplace protections. In 29 states, anyone can be fired simply for being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. This means that a person married to a same-sex partner in Maryland, a state that has workplace protections, and working in Virginia could be fired just for being gay, with no recourse, unless they are a state employee (thanks to the non-discrimination bill that passed the Virginia state Senate last week). This situation restricts where people can work, and is not conducive for a functioning economy. It is also blatantly unfair for LGBT people. The president clearly stated his support for the LGBT community during his Inaugural Address. An executive order would take his words one step further and build the momentum for 2013 to be the year for significant workplace advances for LGBT people.
One big question is how inclusive such an order would be. At the very least, it should require all federal contractors to include sexual orientation and gender identity in their non-discrimination policies. A more comprehensive executive order might also require contractors to offer domestic partner benefits, implement diversity and inclusion training, and demonstrate non-discrimination in their hiring practices. This would be a huge improvement. Out and Equal Workplace Advocates provides diversity training and works closely with LGBT employee resource groups at a number of government contractors, including Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Rockwell Collins, and General Dynamics. These companies are ahead of the curve, and stand out from other contractors that have yet to create concrete policies.
An executive order would be a huge step forward for LGBT rights.
The order would bring monumental changes to the workplace for LGBT people by extending protections into those parts of the private sector where they currently do not exist. An executive order from Obama would provide true incentive for some of the nation’s largest corporations to create inclusive workplaces: if they want to do business with the government, they would need to comply with the executive order.
Continue reading at: http://www.ebar.com/columns/column.php?sec=guest_op&article=404
