The Intolerable Reality of Day-to-Day Workplace Discrimination Against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Americans
The following summarizes just a few of the egregious situations presented in sexual orientation employment discrimination cases that failed due to lack of availability of a law to protect LGBT people in the workplace. In each of these cases, the court held that the gay employee had no legal claim under Title VII, the federal law that forbids employment discrimination nationwide based on race, sex, national origin and religion. Shocking as it is to many, only a minority of states in America today have laws clearly outlawing the outrageous abuses reported in these cases. The early dismissal of each of these cases means that the employees were denied the right to tell a jury their stories. Also, these examples are drawn from court decisions, which resulted only because these workers were able to find lawyers to help them seek some measure of fairness through legal action. The Help Desks in our five offices collectively receive more than 1,000 calls annually from people with employment-related problems, a great many of whom cannot find any legal representation because federal law is so grossly inadequate. As you review these summaries and shake your head in disgust, you'll probably agree: There ought to be a law!