The Human Rights Campaign has released its “The State of the Workplace 2005-2006” report. There’s lots of good news. For the first time, a majority of Fortune 500 companies (albeit only 51% percent) offer domestic partner health insurance benefits. A more solid majority (86%) now include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies. While only 16% include gender identity and/or expression, this is a tenfold increase from 2001. In related legislation, seven states banned private-sector discrimination based on both sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, and 10 more on sexual orientation alone. That’s a trend to be happy about, whether you’re working or currently staying home and using or wanting your partner’s employment benefits.
Still, there’s room for improvement in all of the above areas. Additionally, I think it’s worth mentioning that legislation was introduced in Congress to end federal taxation of domestic partner health coverage. Seventeen major corporations support the bill. Coverage of the measure, however, seems to have been overwhelmed by the flood of media about same-sex marriage. Let’s face it, though: federally recognized marriage is a long way off, and much as many of us want marriage rather than civil unions or domestic partnerships, we may have to deal with the latter for at least some time. This legislation is a step towards fairness and would have a direct impact on our family finances (as well as giving corporations a break on the extra payroll taxes they pay for DP benefits). The bill is currently in committee. You can find out more about it on the HRC Web site, and urge your senators to cosponsor it if they haven’t already.
The report also covers policies and benefits for employees of state and local governments and of colleges and universities. All in all, it’s a great read if you’re interested in workplace issues, either as a worker or the partner of one. (As the former head of a Fortune 500 company’s LGBT employee group, I have an obvious bias here. You may find it dull as dust.) There’s lots of ammunition for dealing with recalcitrant HR departments. (For example, did you know that the San Francisco Human Rights Commission maintains a state-by-state database of insurance carriers that provide plans inclusive of same-sex partners?)
Have a read while you’re enjoying a few days off from work for the holiday weekend. (I hope my international readers have a good weekend, too. You can laugh at the fact that Americans celebrate their national day of independence by grilling hot dogs and setting off explosives.)