ENDA is the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. It passed the Senate but House leader Jon Boehner won't bring it to the floor for a vote. Polls show there is strong support for it in the House and it would likely pass. So WHY isn't Boehner bringing it to the floor? The Equal Opportunity Employment Act protects based on Sex, Religion, Race, and Nationality. There are separate acts to protect Employees from age discrimination, disability discrimination and pregnancy discrimination. The only group missing is the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender community. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act is supposed to close that gap and provide those some protections in the work place for the GLBT community.
Equal Opportunity Employment Act:
http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/history/35th/thelaw/index.html
As you can see, New Jersey's laws have changed a lot in time. Currently:
1. same-sex couples can marry
2. there are work place protections for the entire GLBT community
3. there are stronger bullying penalties for abuses involving sexual orientation and gender identity
4. There is a ban on sexual orientation conversion efforts on minors
5. Transgender individuals can request a new birth certificate after undergoing sex reassignment surgery.
before same-sex marriage was made legal, a married transgender individual could undergo sex reassignment surgery without their marriage being voided. Clearly, that part isn't an issue anymore.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_New_Jersey
Christie may have had issues with same-sex marriage but he signed the ban on sexual orientation conversion efforts (including conversion therapy). New Jersey is a pretty GLBT friendly state. Not all states have these protections. I was especially surprised to hear that in some places the GLBT community could legally be fired for their sexual orientation or gender identity. Like most, I had assumed it was part of the Equal Opportunity Employment Act but when ENDA hit the news I learned it wasn't.
The argument those against these rights use is "it infringes on our religious freedom". But when I ask the question "how" I can't get an answer. Fight ENDA.org gave the following reasons:
1. Such legislation affords special protection to a group that is not disadvantaged.
2. The issue is not job discrimination.
3. The first "religious exemption" clause is very narrow and offers no clear protection to church-related businesses.
4. The second "religious exemption" clause fails to offer protection for all hiring by church-related organizations or businesses.
5. It is unlikely that the "religious exemption" included in the bill would survive court challenge.
6. ENDA would mandate the employment of homosexuals in inappropriate occupations.
7. ENDA violates employers' and employees' Constitutional freedoms of religion, speech and association.
8. ENDA would approvingly bring private behavior considered immoral by many into the public square.
http://www.fightenda.org/
Here's what I have to say:
1. HOW is it not job discrimination? If an Employee can be fired for sexual orientation or gender identity alone they are being discriminated against at work! Qualifications and job performance are the only things that matter.
2. Narrow religious exemption clause? The clause is below. Non-profit religious organizations can continue to be as discriminatory as they want. They aren't impacted by this law.
http://www.civilrights.org/lgbt/enda/religious-exemption.html
The exemption consists of three parts:
- A complete exemption for houses of worship, parochial and similar religious schools, and missions
- A codification of the so-called “ministerial exemption” recognized by many federal courts, exempting positions at religious organizations that involve the teaching or spreading religion, religious governance, or the supervision of individuals engaged in these activities
- A provision allowing religious organizations, for classes of jobs, to require employees and applicants to conform to a declared set of significant religious tenets, including ones which would bar LGBT people from holding the position
3. Fails to offer protection for all hiring by church related organizations or businesses? Who's left out? Catholic hospitals? That's in part three. The only real exempt companies are profit based like Hobby Lobby. That's not a church related organization even if they sell crosses. If these profit businesses want to become associated with a particular religion they risk loosing customers who's values differ. They have a choice, make changes to fall under this law and risk loosing business or be forced to follow this law and continue to profit from the GLBT community and their strongest supporters.
4. The bill won't survive a court challenge. That's right it won't because sexual orientation and gender identity don't impact a person's ability to do their job. It's about choosing the best person for the job based on skills and experience alone. Why is it so important to these people to keep the GLBT community out of the work force? The irony is that prolonged unemployment would lead to many qualified GLBT individuals legitimately being eligible for Government assistance. They could either pay taxes through work or take tax money because they can't get a job due to their sexual orientation. Considering how most of these opponents feel about government assistance programs it's ironic how many people they want to be forced to rely on them. It's better for the entire country for the qualified members of the GLBT to be able to get a job.
5. Homosexuals in inappropriate occupations? Really? What occupations? How would being gay effect someone's ability to do a job? I can think of one job only, prostitute. Prostitution is illegal anyway. Skills are not attached to sexual orientation. My guess is the jobs are a list of stereotypical jobs that already have members of the GLBT community in them and doing a fantastic job at them.
6. ENDA violates employers' and employees' Constitutional freedoms of religion, speech and association. Again, HOW? Because it means you can't call them insulting names and harass them? You can't call them things that are as bad as calling a black person the "n" word. It means you have to talk to them professionally and not act like a 12 year old bully. It means you can't comment on their personal life. It's business. Unless the family business effects work (example: I have to work from home the rest of the day, my son is sick), you don't have to talk about personal lives unless both people can do it peacefully.
7. ENDA would approvingly bring private behavior considered immoral by many into the public square. Again, HOW? They aren't having sex in the office. If they did, that counts as sexual harassment, something EVERYONE is entitled to complain about. Are they saying they don't want to have to look at a gay person? Do they know how that sounds? What makes them think this is a reasonable thing? It might be immoral in some religions but not all. We ALL have religious freedom and that means it's not immoral to everyone. If convicted rapists can legally be hired after being released from prison why can't GLBT people be hired without discrimination? How is a rapist more of a moral individual then a GLBT person?
The polls have spoken, MOST people see nothing wrong with the GLBT community having protections in the workplace. That includes people who are against same-sex marriage. That includes polls among members of the House. Much like Christie, a lot of people might not think same-sex marriage should be allowed but agree their sexual orientation or gender identity doesn't impact their ability to do their jobs and they should be treated equal at work. What do opponents think GLBT people will do at work? They aren't giving examples.
What it all amounts to is this: FEAR! It's not about a random gay co-worker, it's about their own kids. These are the people that support Conversion Therapy. If they find out their child is gay they treat them like they have just admitted to murdering 20 people in the most gruesome of ways. All of a sudden they think their child is going to go to hell due to this trait that's a part of who they are. Something the child had no control over.
So they would rather ignore that there are GLBT individuals in the world. If they don't exist, their child can't be one of them. They would never have to deal with having a child who is gay, bisexual or transgender. To them, that would make their child a disappointment and an embarrassment. They would think they are a failure as a parent. Someday they might be forced to deal with their child being in a same-sex relationship. They would be forced to see things from the point of view of the same people their religion tells them to hate. They are confused because they love their child but their religion tells them not to. The religion words it as "help those who are lost or have strayed find their way back" but hate is what it really is.
Most know that a coworker isn't going to dress like they are in the gay pride parade when they should be wearing a suit to work. They know they won't walk into a conference room to find two gay guys having sex. In most cases, you probably would only know a co-worker's sexual orientation if you ask or search the pictures on their desk. So what if a male co-worker comes in one day as a woman? If they are conducting themselves professionally and doing their job well, that doesn't matter.
But to opponents they live in fear of their child coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. They don't understand what most GLBT individuals are like and consider stereotypes to be true for ALL GLBT individuals. That's not the case. ENDA won't stop them from praying, helping the poor, going to church and many other things. The things they wouldn't be able to do is use personal prejudice in hiring and firing decisions and call gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual names that are as derogatory as the "n" word is to black people. It means they have to hire and fire based on qualifications and job performance. It means they have to keep their personal views out of the work place.
They want life to be hard for the GLBT community. If there are less out GLBT people, their own family members are less likely to come out and they can pretend things are the way they are told they are supposed to be. They think maybe their gay child will "change their minds" and be strait since life is easier if you are strait. They don't understand it can't be changed.
Why should Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender individuals suffer because of someone else's views? They have religious freedom too and if their religion says there is nothing wrong with being a GLBT individual, then they can freely live their lives peacefully as law abiding and tax paying citizens. It is part of THEIR religious freedom! "ALL men are created equal".
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