The Business of Equality
by Selisse Berry | Huffington Post
For some time now, corporate America has been making steady progress in treating gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in a fair and equitable way in the workplace. Courts continue to rule on the side of equality on issues ranging from marriage to military service. Enacting legislation that supports workplace fairness is viewed favorably by a majority of Americans, so one would think politicians would be on a parallel track. But as we have seen in the past year, that is definitely not the case.
So why is it that the road to passing the Federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would protect LGBT people in the workplace, has been anything but straightforward?
According to the 2010 Out & Equal Workplace Survey conducted by Harris Interactive® in conjunction with Out & Equal Workplace Advocates and Witeck-Combs Communications, over 70% of Americans surveyed believe that the standard for judging an employee should be how he or she does their job not their sexual orientation or gender identity. And yet, the legislation that would support such a standard faces continual obstacles in Congress.
In the face of those statistics many Americans are asking: what is the hold-up?
Selisse Berry is founding executive director of Out & Equal Workplace Advocates, the nation’s only national nonprofit organization specifically dedicated to creating safe and equitable workplaces for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.
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