A Broken Bargain: Discrimination, Fewer Benefits and More Taxes for LGBT Workers

“If there’s one thing small business owners know, it’s that nothing creates success like hard work. Anyone who’s willing to work hard should have the chance to earn a living, contribute to our nation’s economy, and provide for themselves and their families. Inequities facing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) workers in the U.S. workplace not only hurt millions of hardworking Americans, but they also take a toll on small business owners, our primary job creators. [This report] provides a first-of-its kind look at the ways inequitable laws impose across-the-board hardships that undermine both the economic security of millions of workers and the ability of businesses to recruit, employ and retain the best and brightest” (p. i). Sections of this publication following an executive summary include: introduction to issues about LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) workers in the United States; discrimination without legal protection-bias in recruitment and hiring, on-the-job inequality and unfairness, wage gaps and penalties, lack of legal protections, and recommendations and solutions to address this discrimination; fewer benefits and more taxes-unequal access to health insurance benefits, denial of family and medical leave, denial of spousal retirement benefits, unequal family protections when a worker dies or becomes disabled, inability to sponsor families for immigration, and recommendations and solutions for equalizing pay and benefits; and concluding observations.