The Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2007 - Fact Sheet
February 2, 2007
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) would extend fair employment practices under federal law to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. It does not create any “special rights,” but simply affords to all Americans basic protection from employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. It is based on the principle that every worker should be judged solely on his or her merits. ENDA applies the same procedures and similar, but more limited, remedies as other federal civil rights laws, like Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
A Pragmatic Approach
ENDA is a pragmatic and measured solution to the problem of workplace discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans. It does not apply to small businesses, most religious organizations, or the military. It prohibits preferential treatment, the use of quotas, and the collection of statistics. It permits employers to maintain generally-applicable workplace policies, including dress codes. ENDA does not require that benefits be provided to the same-sex partners of employees.
Public Support
ENDA’s goal is widely supported by the American people. According to a 2006 Gallup study, 89% of Americans believe gay people should have equal job opportunities. In a 2004 Hart Research poll, 65% of those surveyed believe it should definitely be illegal to fire someone because he or she is transgender.
ENDA is also supported by large coalition of civil rights, labor, and religious organizations, including the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.
States’ Experience
Seventeen states (California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin) and the District of Columbia have passed laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. In addition, eight states (California, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Washington) and the District of Columbia prohibit discrimination based on gender identity. Most of these laws are broader in scope than ENDA, covering discrimination not only in employment, but also in housing and public accommodations.
While these laws provide important protections, according to a 2002 General Accounting Office (GAO) report, they have not led to a flood of litigation, but rather have provided appropriate remedies to the modest number of cases of discrimination.
Corporate America
Corporate America opposes discrimination and has enacted policies protecting their gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees. In fact, as of January 2007, 430 (over 85%) of the FORTUNE 500 companies have implemented non-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation, and 121 (nearly 25%) have policies that include gender identity. Over 7.5 million employees work for FORTUNE 500 companies that prohibit both sexual orientation- and gender identity-based discrimination.
