WATCH LIST: Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2007

 

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WorkplaceHorizons.com coverage:

• Sexual Orientation Discrimination

Full text:

•  H.R. 2015

Summary:

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2007 (H.R. 2015) would prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.

As originally introduced in the House of Representatives on April 24, 2007, the proposed Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) (H.R. 2015) would have prohibited covered employers, unions, employment agencies, and joint labor-management committees from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation (defined as homosexuality, heterosexuality or bisexuality) or gender identity (defined as the gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, with or without regard to the individual’s designated sex at birth). Expressing concerns that the inclusion of discrimination based on gender identity would likely prevent the bill from being enacted, one of ENDA’s co-sponsors, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), introduced a new version of ENDA (H.R. 3685) on September 26, 2007 that would prohibit employment-related discrimination only with respect to sexual orientation. At the same time, he introduced a separate bill (H.R. 3686) that would prohibit employment-related discrimination based on gender identity.