Today, the White House released further amendments to Executive Order 11478, Equal Employment Opportunity in the Federal Government, and Executive Order 11246, Equal Employment Opportunity. Essentially the amendments added the words “gender identity” to the appropriate sentences of the Executive Orders.
The Orders ensure that federal employees – who are already protected on the basis of sexual orientation – will now formally be protected from discrimination based on gender identity as well.
The President’s action builds on important progress his Administration has made expanding opportunity, advancing equality, and leveling the playing field for the LGBT community including:
· Repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell;”
· Ending the legal defense of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act;
· Implementing the Supreme Court’s ruling in Windsor;
· Signing historic Hate Crimes Legislation into law, and;
· Expanding access to health coverage and addressing LGBT health care disparities.
Background
· President Obama’s Executive Order will amend Executive Order 11246, issued by President Johnson, to add sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of protected categories in the existing Executive Order covering federal contractors.
· President Obama’s Executive Order does not allow for any further exemption for religious entities beyond the one added by President George W. Bush. President Johnson’s Order was previously amended by President George W. Bush in 2002 to allow religiously affiliated contractors to favor individuals of a particular religion when making employment decisions.
· In addition, under the First Amendment, religious entities are permitted to make employment decisions about their ministers, a category that includes, but is not limited to, clergy, as they see fit.
· Executive Order 11478, issued by President Nixon in 1969, bars discrimination against federal employees on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and age, and was amended by President Clinton in 1998 through Executive Order 13087 to include sexual orientation. President Obama’s Executive Order will add gender identity to the list of protected categories.
· The EEOC and other federal agencies already apply Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect federal employees from discrimination on the basis of gender identity as a form of sex discrimination. The President believes it is also important to explicitly prohibit – in both Executive Action and in legislation – discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
