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June 24, 2009 – The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, hailed today the bipartisan reintroduction of an inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would create federal protections against workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.  The lead sponsors of the measure are Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA), IIeana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jared Polis (D-CO), Michael Castle (R-DE), George Miller (D-CA), Mark Kirk (R-IL), John Conyers (D-MI), Todd Platts (R-PA), Rob Andrews (D-NJ), and Leonard Lance (R-NJ).
 
“Just like our friends, neighbors and coworkers, LGBT Americans work hard, provide for our families and contribute to our nation’s economy,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese.  “We all share the challenges of today's economic downturn, but our community also faces arbitrary discrimination in the workplace, simply because of who we are and who we love.  Congress must pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and ensure that all Americans, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity, get a fair chance to succeed at work.”
 
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act would address discrimination in the workplace by making it illegal to fire, refuse to hire or refuse to promote an employee based on the person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.  This bill would reflect the values, shared by the vast majority of Americans, that employment decisions should be based on a person’s qualifications and work ethic.
 
An estimated 85% of Fortune 500 companies include sexual orientation in their equal employment policies, and more than one-third also include gender identity.  More than 60 companies have joined the Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness, a group of leading U.S. employers that support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.  To view a list of the companies, visit:  http://www.hrcbackstory.org/2009/06/enda-introduction-tomorrow-corporations-agree-fairness-is-good-business/
 
“Although more and more businesses in the United States have started addressing workplace fairness for LGBT employees, we still need a federal standard that treats all employees the same way.  That’s why Nike is part of the Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness, a group of leading companies that support passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act,” said Orson Porter, U.S. Director of Government Affairs.
 
“Chubb is unwavering in its support of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.  The principles it fosters are consistent with our corporate principles of treating all employees with fairness and respect,” said Donna Griffin, senior vice president and chief diversity officer, The Chubb Corporation. “ENDA will have a positive impact on our country’s ability to compete on the world stage, by extending legal protection in the majority of states where employees can still be turned down for a job, or fired, simply because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.”
 
ENDA is supported by a broad range of civil rights, religious, civic and professional organizations, including the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, NAACP, AFL-CIO, Service Employees International Union, AFSCME, National Education Association, National Employment Lawyers Association, Anti-Defamation League, Religious Action Center, Unitiarian Universalist Association, United Church of Christ, American Civil Liberties Union, and many others.
 
Currently, federal law provides legal protection against employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, age and disability, but not sexual orientation or gender identity.  In 30 states across America, it is still legal to fire someone based on his or her sexual orientation, and in 38 states, it is still legal to fire someone for being transgender.
 
In 2007, the House passed a version of ENDA that protected on the basis of sexual orientation, but not gender identity, on a vote of 235 to 184.
 
The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.
 

From HRC Back Story:

June 23, 2009 -- As we reported last week, tomorrow the Employment Non-Discrimination Act will be introduced in the U.S. House by a bipartisan group of Representatives.  At the press conference will be Rep. Barney Frank, joined by Rep. George Miller, Rep. John Conyers, Rep. Tammy Baldwin, Rep. Jared Polis, Rep. Rob Andrews, Rep. Mike Castle, Rep. Todd Platts, Rep. Leonard Lance, and others. Also participating will be representatives of the Human Rights Campaign, the AFL-CIO, and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

Corporate America is joining the chorus of support for this common sense legislation and a number of business have joined the Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness to work toward passage of ENDA.

The majority of United States businesses have already started addressing workplace fairness for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. But we need a federal standard that treats all employees the same way. The Business Coalition for Workplace Fairness is a group of leading U.S. employers that support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a federal bill that would provide the same basic protections that are already afforded to workers across the country. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees are not protected under federal law from being fired, refused work or otherwise discriminated against. ENDA would do just that.

Leading employers that support workplace fairness and the passage of the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act:

Accenture Ltd. New York, NY
Alberto – Culver Co. Melrose Park, IL
AMR Corp. (American Airlines) Fort Worth, TX
Bank of America Corp. Charlotte, NC
Bausch & Lomb Inc. Rochester, NY
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. Ridgefield, CT
BP America Inc. Warrenville, IL
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. New York, NY
Capital One Financial Corp. McLean, VA
Charles Schwab & Co. San Francisco, CA
Chevron Corp. San Ramon, CA
Chubb Corp. Warren, NJ
Cisco Systems Inc. San Jose, CA
Citigroup New York, NY
Clear Channel Communications Inc. San Antonio, TX
Coca-Cola Co. Atlanta, GA
Coors Brewing Co. Golden, CO
Corning Inc. Corning, NY
Deutsche Bank New York, NY
Diageo North America Norwalk, CT
Dow Chemical Co. Midland, MI
Eastman Kodak Co. Rochester, NY
Electronic Arts Inc. Redwood City, CA
EMC Corp. Hopkinton, MA
Ernst & Young LLP New York, NY
Gap Inc. San Francisco, CA
General Mills Inc. Minneapolis, MN
General Motors Corp. Detroit, MI
GlaxoSmithKline Philadelphia, PA
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. New York, NY
Google Inc. Mountain View, CA
Harrah’s Entertainment Inc. Las Vegas, NV
Herman Miller Inc. Zeeland, MI
Hewlett-Packard Co. Palo Alto, CA
Hospira Inc. Lake Forest, IL
HSBC – North America Prospect Heights, IL
Integrity Staffing Solutions Inc. Wilmington, DE
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. New York, NY
Kaiser Permanente Oakland, CA
KPMG LLP New York, NY
Levi Strauss & Co. San Francisco, CA
Marriott International Inc. Bethesda, MD
Merck & Co. Inc. Whitehouse Station, NJ
Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. New York, NY
Microsoft Corp. Redmond, WA
Morgan Stanley New York, NY
Nationwide Columbus, OH
NCR Corp. Dayton, OH
Nike Inc. Beaverton, OR
Pfizer Inc. New York, NY
QUALCOMM Inc. San Diego, CA
RBC Dain Rauscher Inc. Minneapolis, MN
Replacements Ltd. McLeansville, NC
Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi LLP Minneapolis, MN
Ryder System Inc. Miami, FL
Sun Microsystems Inc. Santa Clara, CA
Time Warner Inc. New York, NY
Travelers Companies Inc. St. Paul, MN
Washington Mutual Inc. Seattle, WA
Xerox Corp. Stamford, CT
Yahoo! Inc. Sunnyvale, CA

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