An article in the Guardian looks at the continued difficulty that far too many LGBT employees experience in the workplace: the fear of the consequences of coming out. Even in states and countries that afford non-discrimination protections, coming out can be a career killer because of all the insidious ways that homophobic superiors aand/or co-workers can undermine one's job security. Where there's a will to fire someone, with time and subtrifuge, it can be done. In the long term, I believe that the USA's failure to match the employment protections becoming more and more common in other nations will hurt the nations competitiveness in the global economy. The best and the brightest from other nations don't want to live under a pall of bigotry. For the time being, coming out at work can be daunting.*
So the question becomes one of "should I come out at work or not?" Having been in the closet at work I know first hand the added daily stress it factors into the mix, thus impairing job productivity. Moreover, it's hard to build true comraderie with co-workers when you cannot be honest about yourself or your partner and family. In my case, I did ultimately came out at work and it was fine until my law firm was basically acquired by a firm called Wolcott & Rivers and I was booted. In the view of bigots within that firm, an openly gay partner might offend the sensibilities of conservative clients. I have my own law firm now and the irony is that clients do not seem to give a damn whether or not I'm gay or straight. In fact, I have found that minority clients of all types - including Mulsims - often seem more comfortable with my firm simply because they do not feel they will face any form of discrimination. Something that assuredly is not true at many of the larger area law firms where bigotry remains alive and well despite pretenses to the contrary.
So the question becomes one of "should I come out at work or not?" Having been in the closet at work I know first hand the added daily stress it factors into the mix, thus impairing job productivity. Moreover, it's hard to build true comraderie with co-workers when you cannot be honest about yourself or your partner and family. In my case, I did ultimately came out at work and it was fine until my law firm was basically acquired by a firm called Wolcott & Rivers and I was booted. In the view of bigots within that firm, an openly gay partner might offend the sensibilities of conservative clients. I have my own law firm now and the irony is that clients do not seem to give a damn whether or not I'm gay or straight. In fact, I have found that minority clients of all types - including Mulsims - often seem more comfortable with my firm simply because they do not feel they will face any form of discrimination. Something that assuredly is not true at many of the larger area law firms where bigotry remains alive and well despite pretenses to the contrary.
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So what does an LGBT employee do? It comes down to a personal choice of how you want to live. With laws like DADT daily telling the larger public that anti-gay discrimination is perfectly fine, know that there are very real risks involved in backward states like Virginia. On the other side of the equation is the liberation that goes with not having to hide who your are all day, every work day. Here are highlights from the Guardian article that reflect a far better situation in the UK than here in America:
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"Coming out is still a huge risk for a lot of people, especially in blue collar industries and smaller businesses, but with businesses becoming more switched on and the next generation expecting more equality, things are changing," he says.
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Stonewall runs an Equality Index for workplaces – normally for those with 500 staff or more that have the best policies – and also has a leadership programme to help gay people. "People at the top are often the most scared about coming out because they feel they have the most to lose," says Thomas.
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He says that while those on the index have some very impressive policies and initiatives aimed at making LGBT staff feel more comfortable, general diversity training in UK workplaces is often more focused on issues of race rather than sexuality, which leads to a lack of confidence.
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But even at workplaces with strong policies, some staff are not happy to come out, as Gemma, a gay accountant in London knows. She says that despite her company's high ranking on the Stonewall index, she doesn't have enough trust in her managers to be honest about her sexuality. "It's a very straight, conservative working environment. There is an LGB group but it is virtually invisible, unless you specifically seek it out. And, there is rarely any internal publicity about what the group is and what it can do for staff," she says.
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Even in higher education, only 38% of staff are comfortable enough to come out – and 34% have been treated negatively because of their sexual orientation, according to research by the Equality and Human Rights Commission last year.
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Changing attitudes is partly about the visibility of LGBT people in the workplace, says Thomas. "I would always encourage people to come out at work if they can, because it's good for others in the company who might be gay to see representation." He is also keen to encourage LGBT people to see that their sexuality can be pitched as an asset. "Plenty of companies and organisations appreciate the value of a diverse workforce. They know that allowing staff to feel comfortable about who they are makes them more productive," he says.
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Confidence is likely to increase further following the introduction of the Equality Act 2010 last month. This act is designed to strengthen LGBT employee rights and promises to take direct and non-direct sexuality discrimination more seriously. It is another milestone we can be thankful for, particularly when we look at the situation in countries such as the US, where – shockingly – you can still be sacked for being gay in 28 states.
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Yes, people do notice the legalized bigotry in the USA. I suspect more and more people around the world are coming to see that America's image of itself as land of the free and a nation with religious freedom for all is a huge lie.
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"Coming out is still a huge risk for a lot of people, especially in blue collar industries and smaller businesses, but with businesses becoming more switched on and the next generation expecting more equality, things are changing," he says.
*
Stonewall runs an Equality Index for workplaces – normally for those with 500 staff or more that have the best policies – and also has a leadership programme to help gay people. "People at the top are often the most scared about coming out because they feel they have the most to lose," says Thomas.
*
He says that while those on the index have some very impressive policies and initiatives aimed at making LGBT staff feel more comfortable, general diversity training in UK workplaces is often more focused on issues of race rather than sexuality, which leads to a lack of confidence.
*
But even at workplaces with strong policies, some staff are not happy to come out, as Gemma, a gay accountant in London knows. She says that despite her company's high ranking on the Stonewall index, she doesn't have enough trust in her managers to be honest about her sexuality. "It's a very straight, conservative working environment. There is an LGB group but it is virtually invisible, unless you specifically seek it out. And, there is rarely any internal publicity about what the group is and what it can do for staff," she says.
*
Even in higher education, only 38% of staff are comfortable enough to come out – and 34% have been treated negatively because of their sexual orientation, according to research by the Equality and Human Rights Commission last year.
*
Changing attitudes is partly about the visibility of LGBT people in the workplace, says Thomas. "I would always encourage people to come out at work if they can, because it's good for others in the company who might be gay to see representation." He is also keen to encourage LGBT people to see that their sexuality can be pitched as an asset. "Plenty of companies and organisations appreciate the value of a diverse workforce. They know that allowing staff to feel comfortable about who they are makes them more productive," he says.
*
Confidence is likely to increase further following the introduction of the Equality Act 2010 last month. This act is designed to strengthen LGBT employee rights and promises to take direct and non-direct sexuality discrimination more seriously. It is another milestone we can be thankful for, particularly when we look at the situation in countries such as the US, where – shockingly – you can still be sacked for being gay in 28 states.
*
Yes, people do notice the legalized bigotry in the USA. I suspect more and more people around the world are coming to see that America's image of itself as land of the free and a nation with religious freedom for all is a huge lie.
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