New Poll: Most Americans support ENDA

A conservative poll reveals that a majority of Americans support ENDA.

TargetPoint surveyed 2,000 registered voters and learned some important things:

• 80% believed that federal law to protect LGBT workers already exist. 
• 60% said anti-LGBT discrimination is a problem in our country.
• One that note, 54% of self-described Republicans agree.
• 68% support a federal law that protects LGBT Americans from workplace discrimination.
• 56% said they support a federal workplace nondiscrimination law.

Things are looking good for ENDA. Can we get on it already?

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New Report: 1 Out of 3 Gays are Closeted at Work

A new report tells us that it's still hard to be out and proud at work:

In a review of studies including the 2008 General Social Survey, a national probability survey, the Williams Institute reported Monday that 38% of lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees who are out at work reported being harassed because of their sexual orientation. More than one-third of respondents said they were not out to any colleagues at work.

Surveys focused specifically on transgender workers in recent years have found even greater employment discrimination: a 2011 study, for example, found that 78% of trans employees had reported at least one form of harassment on the job, with nearly half experiencing discrimination in hiring, promotion, and retention.

Via the Williams Institute's Monday release:
Among LGB respondents to the [General Social Survey], 42% had experienced employment discrimination at some point in their lives, and 27% had experienced employment discrimination just during the five-year period prior to the survey. …

“This new data shows that it’s still risky to come out about being LGBT in the workplace,” study co-author and Williams legal fellow Christy Mallory said. “Therefore, it’s not surprising that the GSS data also show that one-third of LGB employees are not open about their sexual orientation to anyone in the workplace.” …

Just when I thought it was getting better.
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AG tells Virginia to Stop Gay Protections

This is very interesting to read.

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccienelli II wants VA's public colleges and universities to end all policies that ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, because they have no legal authority to adopt those statements.

In his most aggressive initiative on conservative social issues since taking office in January, Cuccinelli (R) wrote in the letter sent Thursday that only the General Assembly can extend legal protections to gay state employees, students and others -- a move the legislature has repeatedly declined to take as recently as this week.

The letter demonstrates an increasing split in the region's policies on issues related to sexual orientation. It comes in the same week that the District began issuing marriage licenses for gay couples and a week after Maryland's attorney general announced that his state will recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.

"It is my advice that the law and public policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia prohibit a college or university from including 'sexual orientation,' 'gender identity,' 'gender expression,' or like classification as a protected class within its non-discrimination policy absent specific authorization from the General Assembly," he wrote in the letter.

Really? I'm curious to see how folks are taking this news.

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Are you Out at Work?

I am, but according to a survey by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, many LGBT folks are not.

Here are some results

51% of LGBT employees say they hide their sexual orientation or gender identity from most or all of their coworkers.

42% of LGBT employees say they've lied about their personal relationships in the past year.

5% of workers ages 18–24 say they are open about their sexual orientation or gender identity, while 20% of their older colleagues say they are.

The survey also found that only 18% of LGBT Latinos are willing to be open with everyone at work, compared to 25% of African-Americans and 29% of whites.

Go here to see the full thing.