THE SUPREME COURT RULING THAT SHOOK THE NATION: QUEER PROTECTION IN THE WORKPLACE

THE SUPREME COURT RULING THAT SHOOK THE NATION QUEER PROTECTION INTHE WORKPLACE

by Ray Manzari

The Supreme Court ruled recently that the key, federal law prohibiting discrimination in the workplace protects LGBTQ employees from being disciplined, fired, or turned down for a job based on their sexual orientation, race, religion, or gender identity. Two of the court’s Republican appointees, Neil Gorsuch and John Roberts, surprisingly joined the court’s democratic appointees to deliver the 6-3 victory to LGBTQ advocates. Because Congress has spent more than four decades considering and failing to add these measures, this was expected to be more of an uphill battle in the Supreme Court. Finally, the 1964 Civil Rights Act explicitly adds sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of protections. Employment Lawyer Sam SchwartzFenwick, partner with Seyfarth, who leads the law firm’s LGBTQ Affinity Group, has followed the cases as they worked their way up to the Supreme Court. Mr. Schwartz-Fenwick comments, "In a sweeping decision, the Supreme Court held 6-3 that Title VII’s protections extend to sexual orientation and gender identity. The implications of this ruling cannot be understated. Until today, most jurisdictions in the United States offered no employment protections to LGBT individuals." He continues, "With this ruling, however, the anti-discrimination mandate of Title VII now protects LGBT individuals throughout the country. Employers, both those who already had LGBT-inclusive policies and those who will now have to adopt them in order to comply with the law, will benefit from the growth in productivity and performance that comes when employees are allowed and encouraged to be themselves at work." Other local officials, including executive director of One Colorado and Colorado's attorney general, made statements as well. "Here in Colorado, we have already passed protections to ensure that LGBTQ Coloradans are treated with dignity and respect; that is not the case for nearly half of LGBTQ Americans. In 29 states, LGBTQ people remain unprotected from discrimination when trying to access public services, adopt children, or secure housing. Our community deserves more than patchwork policies to protect ourselves and our families. We at One Colorado will continue to advocate for consistent and explicit protections for LGBTQ Americans in all areas of public life,” says Daniel Ramos, executive director at One Colorado. “Everyone deserves the right to be their true, authentic selves in their place of work without fear of being fired simply because of who they are or who they love. I applaud the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision affirming that job discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is a form of sex discrimination prohibited under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. It’s a historic day for equality,” Colorado Attorney Genereal Phil Weiser comments.

Because the decision is a matter of statutory interpretation, it is not an all-out guarantee of workplace protections for LGBTQ people in the future, since Congress is free to tinker with the law. But, as a practical political matter, it seems highly unlikely Congress would reach a consensus to repeal those rights anytime soon. Brian K. Bond, executive director of PFLAG National, says that while this is a momentous step, this is a historic time balancing a pandemic, severe unemployment, healthcare limitations, and civil unrest to end racism and white supremacy, and there remains much more work to protect LGBTQ people from discrimination.

"When the U.S. rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, the lack of these protections for LGBTQ+ people will become abundantly clear. Without protection, banks and landlords will not have to extend payment leniency for credit or housing as they would for other protected groups, and LGBTQ people will still be excluded from access to public services, public education, public spaces, and jury duty," Bond says. Kim Bimesterfer, the executive director for the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and a member of the Colorado Governor’s Cabinet, also applauds the decision."We are very pleased the SCOTUS has ruled to protect LGBTQ people in their places of work, aligning with Colorado protections already in place. This decision further supports our goal to make a Colorado that works for everyone.” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis says this decision helps to create a welcoming, respectful, and safe community and is a significant step toward equality. “No person should be afraid to show the world who they are, and no LGBTQ person should risk losing their job by doing so. Colorado will continue to lead on anti-discrimination policies, and my administration will continue to build a Colorado For All.”