2,200 Foreign Service Workers Call for Equal Benefits for Same-Sex Partners

February 2, 2009 - Posted by The Leadership Conference

Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) recently sent Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a letter signed by nearly 2,200 current and former employees of the Department of State and other foreign affairs agencies, calling for equal benefits for the partners and families of GLBT employees.

The signatories, 92 percent of whom were single or married to someone of the opposite sex, wrote: "We believe that no colleague of ours is a second-class colleague, and no colleague's family is a second-class family."

Currently, some of the benefits provided to married couples are not provided to same-sex partners, including health insurance, life insurance, moving expenses to overseas posts, and emergency evacuation of a high danger post.

During her confirmation hearing, Clinton promised to "take a hard look at the existing policy."