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 Employment Non-Discrimination Act Re-Introduced Bi-Partisan Members of Congress Press Passage of Bill |
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Compiled By GayToday
Washington, D.C.—If passed, ENDA would extend federal employment protections currently based on race, religion, gender, national origin, age and disability to sexual orientation. The bill would prohibit employers from using an individual's sexual orientation as the basis for employment decisions, such as hiring, firing, promotion or compensation. ENDA would not cover small businesses with fewer than 15 employees. There is an exemption for religious organizations, including educational institutions substantially controlled or supported by religious organizations.
"Today, Members of the House and Senate will re-introduce, on a bipartisan basis, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act ("ENDA"). This important civil rights legislation would extend basic employment discrimination protections to gay and lesbian Americans. "I strongly support this bill, and we will work hard for its passage. "Americans instinctively believe in fairness. They believe that individuals should not be denied a job on the basis of something that has no relationship to their ability to perform their work. "Yet most Americans don't know that men and women in 39 states of this nation may be fired from their jobs solely because of their sexual orientation, even when it has no bearing on their job performance. "Sadly, as Congressional hearings have documented, this kind of job discrimination is not rare. Those who face job discrimination based on sexual orientation usually have no legal recourse, in either our state or federal courts. This is wrong. "Last year, I issued an executive order making permanent a long-standing federal policy against discrimination based on sexual orientation in the civilian federal workplace. I hope that Congress will make that policy a national one by passing this important legislation. I applaud the bipartisan efforts of Senators Jeffords, Kennedy, and Lieberman and Congressmen Shays and Frank to make the Employment Non-Discrimination Act the law. "ENDA failed to win passage by only one vote when the Senate last considered it. My Administration will continue to work for its passage until it becomes law." Major corporations that already have their own non-discrimination policies and support ENDA include Eastman Kodak, Bell Atlantic, Microsoft and AT&T. Eleven states currently have laws prohibiting discrimination: California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Nevada. Also to be released at the announcement event is a letter from William T. Monahan, Chairman and CEO of Imation, a Minnesota based high tech company. "Quite simply, ENDA would afford gay and lesbian Americans basic employment protection from discrimination based on prejudice," wrote Monahan. "The principles it fosters are consistent with our corporate principles of treating all employees with fairness and respect." At press time, the bill has 35 Senate cosponsors, including two new cosponsors, Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., and Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa. In the House, it has 153 cosponsors, including Reps. Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio, Michael Forbes, R-N.Y., and Calvin Dooley, D-Calif. Additional House and Senate cosponsors are expected momentarily to announce their support . "We have seen growing support for ENDA since it was first introduced in 1994," said Winnie Stachelberg, HRC political director. "For the first time we see support coming from key lawmakers in leadership positions in both parties." The public supports ENDA by a wide margin, according to a bipartisan 1998 poll conducted for the Human Rights Campaign by Lake Snell Perry and Associates and American Viewpoint. The poll shows that 58 percent of Americans support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. The poll of 800 people had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent. |
