Fired for Being Gay Legal in 28 States
Wrongful Termination Rules Don't Apply if Boss Not Ok With Gay Staff
Sep 30, 2009
A recent New York Times editorial spoke to this issue and advocated for the passing of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) . This legislation was first introduced in 1993 by the late Senator Ted Kennedy but has yet to become law. It passed the House in 2007 but at that time did not include protection for transgendered employees. In fact only 12 states and D.C. currently have laws that protect transgendered employees. In the interim, while this bill has been bandied about, hundreds, if not thousands, of innocent employees have been fired for being gay with no legal recourse available to them. The average human being should be outraged that this is allowed to happen, but many have their head in the sand choosing not to believe that this happens in 2009. The proof as they say is in the pudding.....
Fired for Being Gay in TennesseeA hotel worker at the Arte Hotel in Brentwood, Tennessee, claimed he was fired after being outed by a former employee of the company. That employee also claimed to have been fired because of his sexual orientation. Another out gay employee at the same hotel was dismissed shortly after for talking to the media about the situation.
Fired for Being Gay in Florida
A man in Bonita Springs, who claims a manager said, "Gays are sick, they should all be taken out and shot," says he was fired for being gay. He reported that when he came out, he was transferred to an out of the way difficult store and was set up to be fired. When he looked for help at the Lee County Equal Opportunity office, the worker was told there was no law against what happened. Although some Florida cities and counties have enacted there own anti-discrimination law, there is no state wide protection.
Fired for Being Gay in Alabama
A teacher, who kept her private life totally separate from her work life and who was loved by students and co-workers alike, one day, out of the blue, lost her dream job. After getting her degree to pursue her dream, this teacher ended up blacklisted and took work as a delivery driver to make ends meet. She reported feeling a loss of dignity - all her evaluations from the school were top notch but she lost her job anyway.
Fired for Being Gay in ColoradoBrian Simms was fired for being gay even in a state where a non-discrimination law had been passed. He was harassed by management who told him to speak in his 'man voice' and said he could not wear earrings. Goodwill, the company that fired him points out on their website that they are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on sexual orientation. His firing may explain why so many employees continue to stay closeted at work.
Gay Rights an On Going Issue
Ohio recently joined the 21 other states where you cannot be fired for being gay: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Although the list of gay-friendly companies continues to grow, federal legislation, providing blanket equality to all employees has been slow in coming. The state of the union is improving slowly but surely - but true change and acceptance in the workplace may take a while to catch up.
Perhaps, in honour of Senator Kennedy, Congress will finally do the right thing and make the Employment Non-Discrimination Act law.
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