THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

THE U.S.

DEPARTMENT

OF LABOR

ADVANCING 

LGBT

WORKPLACE 

RIGHTS 
THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

At the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), our mission 

is promoting and protecting opportunity. Secretary 

Thomas E. Perez believes that the nation and the 

workforce are strongest when we embrace diversity, 

and when workers can apply their unique skills and 

talents to jobs that provide fair wages, benefits, and 

working conditions, and ensure respectful inclusion. 

For decades, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender 

workers have fought for that same opportunity. At 

this moment in time, we see exciting progress toward 

ending discrimination based on sexual orientation 

and gender identity and reminders that the struggle 

remains unfinished. We applaud the many employers 

who recognize that workplace equality is not just 

the right thing to do – it is also good for business. 

Employers can do well while also doing good. At the 

same time, too many workers and their families still 

encounter legal, economic, and cultural barriers to 

full participation in the American dream. 

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

Secretary Perez: 

“Protecting the workplace rights of LGBT 

workers is a moral imperative.”

(July 21, 2014)

Given this reality, we seek to be the 

“Department of Opportunity” for LGBT 

workers. Under President Obama’s 

leadership, we have assessed how 

every aspect of our day-to-day work 

can incorporate concrete actions to 

advance LGBT workplace equality. From 

our worker-protection agencies and 

regulations, to our grants and technical 

assistance programs, to our own 

responsibilities as an employer, we have 

taken actions large and small to ensure 

LGBT workers and their families can share 

in the benefits of a growing economy.

Today we report on the progress we have 

made, and the work still in progress: 

• WORKPLACE EQUALITY 

Twenty-two states and the District 

of Columbia protect workers from 

employment discrimination based on 

sexual orientation (and all but three 

on the basis of gender identity), and 

most Fortune 500 companies already 

have non-discrimination policies 

in place that protect LGBT workers.1

But no federal law explicitly provides 

these protections. This leaves many 

workers vulnerable to possible 

discrimination and harassment on 

the job. President Obama has ordered 

companies who do business with the 

federal government to abide by new 

rules that protect LGBT workers and 

2

job seekers from discrimination. 

This action will safeguard employment 

rights for the approximately one-fifth 

of the American workforce employed 

by, and those seeking work with, 

these federal contractor companies.2

 

It will level the playing field for 

employers with fair practices, and 

ensure that federal tax dollars do 

not subsidize discrimination. 

 

• EQUAL RECOGNITION 

FOR ALL FAMILIES 

 For many years, essential federal 

benefits tied to marriage excluded 

same-sex marriages. As barriers to 

equality for marriages and families 

continue to fall across the nation, DOL 

has worked to incorporate the principle 

of equal recognition for all families 

within its programs – including 

access to family leave rights, pension 

and health insurance benefits, and 

compensation for injuries on the job. 

• INCREASING ACCESS TO 

DOL PROGRAMS

 DOL programs provide critical training, 

resources and support to workers and 

job seekers. These programs, which 

build skills, support people during 

times of unemployment and economic 

transition, and increase employment 

opportunities, must be open and 
THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

accessible to all – including LGBT 

workers. Through improved policies 

and staff training, the Department 

is ensuring that its education and 

training centers are safe, inclusive, 

and welcoming environments for 

all staff and students, including 

transgender individuals, and that 

laws prohibiting sex discrimination 

in DOL-financially assisted programs 

protect all individuals, including 

LGBT individuals, from sex 

stereotyping and discrimination on 

the basis of gender identity. 

• RESEARCH AND ASSESSMENT

OF THE LGBT WORKER 

EXPERIENCE 

 Data and research about the LGBT 

workforce help develop policies 

responsive to the economic and social 

experiences of all of our nation’s 

workers. To that end, DOL has revised 

existing surveys that collect data from 

workers and employers, so they better 

incorporate data on LGBT workers 

and their families. We will continue 

to identify ways to increase data 

collection in this area.

• TRANSGENDER EQUALITY AND 

INCLUSION IN THE WORKPLACE

 Making workplaces accessible and 

inclusive for transgender workers 

is an important emerging issue – 

and one that aligns clearly with 

the Department’s broader mission 

to open doors of opportunity to 

all workers. This commitment is 

integrated throughout the actions 

described above. It is also an area of 

special emphasis, given the reality 

that according to the 2011 National 

Transgender Discrimination Survey, 

nearly half of transgender workers 

report having been fired, or not 

hired or promoted, because of 

discrimination.3

 Along with courts 

and other federal agencies, DOL has 

determined that discrimination 

against workers because they identify 

as transgender, or express their 

gender in a non-conforming way, 

is illegal sex discrimination. And 

we have applied that principle to a 

series of agency guidance documents, 

rulemakings and internal practices 

and procedures. 

 

Read on to learn more about our work in 

each of these areas, and visit us online

access to our worker and employer 

resources. 

3
President Obama: 

“We’ve got an obligation to make sure that 

the country we love remains a place where 

no matter who you are, or what you look like, 

or where you come from, or how you started 

out, or what your last name is, or who you 

love – no matter what, you can make it 

in this country.” 

(July 21, 2014)

If you experience 

discrimination while working 

for or applying for a job with 

a federal contractor, visit

www.dol.gov/ofccp to file a 

complaint.

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WORKPLACE EQUALITY

Equal employment opportunity is a 

core civil right, and a fundamental 

element of economic security. Many 

employers strongly support LGBT 

workplace equality and know that it is 

good for their business. But in many 

places, laws that ensure workers cannot 

be fired, paid less or harassed because 

of who they are, and that require 

employers to make decisions about 

hiring and promotion fairly and without 

discrimination, do not fully protect 

LGBT workers. 

Only 22 states and the District 

of Columbia explicitly prohibit 

discrimination on the basis of sexual 

orientation, and fewer include 

gender identity. The primary federal 

employment discrimination law, Title 

VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 

bans discrimination on the basis of 

race, color, religion, sex and national 

origin, and other federal laws protect 

workers on the basis of disability, age 

and genetic information. Although 

some courts have ruled that Title VII 

forbids discrimination on the basis of 

sexual orientation and gender identity, 

the Employment Non-Discrimination 

Act, which would explicitly protect LGBT 

workers, remains stalled in Congress.

President Obama took action in July 2014 

to protect workers who are employed by 

or seeking jobs with companies doing 

business with the federal government 

from discrimination on the basis of their 

sexual orientation and gender identity. 

These companies employ approximately 

one-fifth of the American workforce. 

For almost fifty years, Executive Order 

11246 has held federal contractors to the 

fair and reasonable standard that they 
THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

hire, promote, pay, and otherwise treat 

workers equally, without discrimination 

on the basis of race, sex, color, religion 

or national origin. By signing Executive 

Order 13672, the President expanded 

this non-discrimination requirement to 

include sexual orientation and gender 

identity. In addition, President Obama 

updated equal employment opportunity 

rules enforced by other parts of the 

federal government that already protect 

federal workers from discrimination 

based on sexual orientation, by adding 

gender identity as a protected category.

After publishing a final rule, DOL’s Office 

of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, 

known as OFCCP, began implementing 

this expansion of workplace civil rights 

effective April 8, 2015. OFCCP will 

investigate complaints filed by individual 

workers, but can also review workplace 

practices during regularly scheduled 

compliance evaluations. These additional 

protections will give more workers a 

chance to compete fairly based on their 

skills and talents.

DOL has engaged its stakeholders over the 

last year to help employees understand 

their new rights and to help contractors 

understand their new responsibilities. 

President Barack Obama delivers remarks before he 

signs an executive order to protect LGBT employees from 

workplace discrimination, in the East Room of the White 

House, July 21, 2014. (Official White House Photo by 

Pete Souza)

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Through listening sessions with 

contractors and worker advocates we 

have learned more about how to ensure 

compliance and provide effective 

technical assistance. OFCCP provides 

support like training webinars and online 

resources, as well as an extensive training 

program for its own staff. 

As the President recognized when 

he signed the Executive Order, this 

new expansion of workplace civil 

rights builds on many years of work 

by advocates for LGBT equality – 

crediting this historic advance to their 

“passionate advocacy and the irrefutable 

rightness” of their cause. At DOL we are 

now taking up the President’s charge to 

make sure that the right to a workplace 

free from discrimination becomes a 

reality for LGBT workers. 

WHO WE ARE

DOL Office of Federal 

Contract Compliance 

Programs (OFCCP) 

Our work ensures that 

companies doing business with 

the federal government do not 

discriminate in employment on 

the basis of race, color, religion, 

sex, sexual orientation, gender 

identity, national origin, disability 

or status as a protected veteran.
EQUAL RECOGNITION 

FOR ALL FAMILIES

Family recognition – the principle that 

all married couples and their children 

should have equal access to workplace 

privileges and benefits – is a matter of 

basic fairness. It is also now a federal 

requirement. Until very recently, many 

LGBT families had no legal access to 

federal benefits based on marriage, like 

family leave or many insurance, pension 

or other spousal benefits. These benefits 

provide critical economic and personal 

support for workers and their families. 

Over the last two decades, a growing 

movement for marriage equality and 

a series of landmark legal rulings 

have transformed American family 

policy and advanced equality for LGBT 

families. When the Supreme Court in 

U.S. v. Windsor struck down the part of 

the Defense of Marriage Act that limits 

“spouse” and “marriage” to opposite-sex 

marriages, President Obama instructed 

every federal agency to implement 

full and equal recognition for married 

same-sex couples and their children 

throughout federal programs and 

regulations as soon as possible. 

At the direction of the Secretary, DOL 

completed a full assessment of all 

programs and benefits that needed to 

be updated in order to implement equal 

recognition for families. In doing so, 

DOL sought to ensure consistent federal 

family leave rights, regardless of whether 

the state in which a married same-sex 

couple currently lives recognizes such 

marriages. Following the laws of the 

state or jurisdiction where the couple got 

married – called a “place of celebration” 

rule – means recognizing lawfully married 

couples no matter where they live. 

In the case of the Family and Medical 

Leave Act, known as the FMLA, DOL’s 

Wage and Hour Division formally revised 

its regulations in order to cover legally 

married same-sex couples wherever they 

live. The FMLA provides many American 

workers unpaid job-protected leave for 

their own serious health condition, the 

birth or adoption of a child, or to care for 

a spouse or family member with a serious 

health condition. The FMLA also provides 

certain military family leave benefits. 

In 2015, the Department completed the 

process of changing the FMLA regulations, 

issuing a new rule that changed the 

definition of “spouse” to include all legally 

married same-sex couples under a “place 

of celebration” standard.* 

With the new rule, eligible employees in 

legal same-sex marriages can take leave 

on the same basis as all other married 

couples. The Williams Institute estimates 

this change will benefit about 118,000 

individuals with same-sex spouses.4

 The 

basic promise that no one should have to 

choose between the job they need and the 

family they love now applies equally to all 

married couples. 

Even before Windsor, DOL clarified the 

rights of LGBT families to FMLA leave 

by specifying who can take leave to care 

* On March 26, 2015, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, in Texas v. United States, granted a request made by 

the states of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Nebraska for a preliminary injunction with respect to the place of celebration rule under the FMLA. 

The Government has informed the court of how the Government is complying with the injunction and the Government’s understanding of the 

scope of the injunction. For more information and updates visit http://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/spouse/index.htm.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

for a child or a parent under the FMLA. 

In a 2010 Interpretation of the law’s 

“in loco parentis” standard, the Wage 

and Hour Division explicitly included 

LGBT parents who may not have a 

formal legal or biological relationship 

to their children, but who are acting 

as their parents. The Department also 

included references to same- sex partner 

relationships in the “in loco parentis” 

examples described in the Family and 

Medical Leave Act Employee Guide.

In a series of other actions, DOL revised 

many important benefits programs to 

fully include all marriages under a “place 

of celebration” standard. For example, 

the Department’s Employee Benefits 

Security Administration, which protects 

the security of the retirement, health 

and other workplace related benefits of 

America’s workers and their families, 

updated guidance regarding the terms 

“spouse” and “marriage” in its rules that 

apply to most private sector pension and 

health plans. The guidance requires plans 

to read these terms to include legally 

married same-sex couples, regardless of 

where they currently live. The Office of 

Workers’ Compensation Programs issued 

a bulletin clarifying that spouses and 

surviving spouses of federal employees 

in same-sex marriages have equal access 

to workers’ compensation benefits. This 

office also made similar updates to other 

workplace injury programs, including 

one it administers on behalf of certain 

Department of Energy employees and 

contractors and subcontractors who 

worked on the nuclear weapons program, 

and another on behalf of longshore 

workers. The Employment and Training 

Secretary Perez: 

“The basic promise of the FMLA is that no 

one should have to choose between the job 

you need and the family you love.” 

(June 26, 2014)

Under U.S. v. Windsor, 

133 S. Ct. 2675 (2013), the 

U.S. Constitution requires 

the federal government to 

provide equal recognition to 

same-sex couples in valid state 

or foreign marriages. 

This means equal access to 

federal benefits that are 

based on marriage.

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Administration, which administers 

federal job training and dislocated 

worker programs, grants to states for 

public employment service programs, 

and unemployment insurance benefits – 

primarily working through state and local 

workforce development systems - applied 

the family recognition principle to 

programs it supports. The agency issued 

guidance letters on family recognition 

for purposes of applying unemployment 

taxes to work performed by a spouse, and 

on Workforce Investment Act (WIA) grant 

programs and those under the Trade 

Adjustment Act (TAA).

Whether it is taking leave to care for an ill 

spouse, bonding with a new baby, or having 

the peace of mind that loved ones will 

have access to health, pension or workers’ 

compensation benefits if they need 

them, family recognition goes far beyond 

changing legal definitions. It recognizes the 

value of all families – and all workers. 

INCREASING ACCESS TO DOL 

PROGRAMS

Through the Workforce Innovation and 

Opportunity Act, known as WIOA, and its 

predecessor, the Workforce Investment 

Act, the Department supports programs 

designed to help job seekers access 

employment, education, training, and 

support services to succeed in the labor 

market, and to match employers with the 

skilled workers they need to compete in 

the global economy. Every year the key 

programs that form the pillars of workforce Todd and TR with Camden. Their family now has full 

leave rights under the FMLA. Read more about their 

story here.

WHO WE ARE

DOL Wage and Hour 

Division (WHD) 

Our agency enforces federal laws 

on the minimum wage, overtime, 

child labor, prevailing wages, 

family and medical leave and 

others. Visit us at dol.gov/whd to 

access our worker resources or 

file a complaint.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

development help tens of millions of job 

seekers and workers to connect to good 

jobs and acquire the skills and credentials 

they need to obtain them. 

Just like all other workers, LGBT 

individuals can benefit strongly from 

DOL-assisted public workforce programs 

– but only if they have equal access to 

the training, resources and support 

these programs provide. As part of the 

Department’s ongoing work to better 

support LGBT workers and job-seekers, 

DOL has continued to assess and improve 

access to these critical activities.

DOL has made clear that the laws against 

sex discrimination in these programs 

also prohibit discrimination on the basis 

of gender identity. This protects workers 

who identify as transgender, who express 

their gender in a nonconforming way, 

or who do not follow stereotypical ideas 

about how women or men should look 

or act. The Employment and Training 

Administration, and the Department’s 

Civil Rights Center, which enforces 

equal opportunity in workforce 

development programs, jointly issued a 

new guidance document clarifying that 

the non-discrimination laws that apply 

to the workforce development system 

prohibit discrimination on the basis 

of gender identity, gender expression 

and sex-stereotyping. This document 

(called a Training and Employment 

Guidance Letter or TEGL) explains the 

requirement that job training and referral 

programs receiving federal financial 

assistance provide equal access without 

discrimination.

FAMILY RECOGNITION 

ACTIONS

• Change to the family and 

medical leave regulations 

(FMLA) by the Wage and 

Hour Division 

• Updated pension and health 

plan guidance (ERISA) by the 

Employee Benefits Security 

Administration 

• Clarification of access to 

on the job injury benefits 

in three programs (FECA, 

EEOICPA, LHWCA) by 

the Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs 

• Guidanc e on unemployment 

taxes (FUTA) and workforce 

grants (WIA, TAA) by the 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

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In 2015, the Job Corps, a residential 

education and training program for 

youth organized by the Employment 

and Training Administration, issued 

a special notice known as a Program 

Instruction Notice to all staff and 

contractors in its national network of 

education and job training centers. This 

Notice sets forth policies to ensure that 

Job Corps programs are safe, respectful 

and welcoming environments for 

all, including transgender students. 

The Notice provides guidelines on 

ensuring equal access to the program 

and a respectful and harassment-free 

environment. It specifically addresses 

safety, privacy, respectful language (like 

name and pronoun usage), dress codes, 

access to housing, medical issues and 

moving into the workforce. 

In addition to issuing these guidance 

documents, over the last several years 

DOL programs have provided training 

to staff, contractors and grantees to put 

these policies into practice. The DOL 

Civil Rights Center has hosted gender 

identity awareness training for state and 

local workforce agencies and service 

providers who receive DOL funding. 

Job Corps provided a similar training 

for staff at their education and training 

centers on ensuring an inclusive 

workplace and program. 

And as previously mentioned, DOL’s 

family recognition actions, and the 

guidance letters on WIA and TAA grants 

described above, ensure that grant 

programs treat all marriages equally 

when providing services to workers, 

including same-sex married couples and 

their children.

Making our programs accessible to LGBT 

workers and students is not a matter of a 

single training or guidance update, but an 

ongoing commitment. These programs, 

which provide new opportunities 

and critical safety nets, must serve all 

communities and all workers equally. 

WHO WE ARE

The DOL Civil Rights 

Center 

We enforce equal employment 

opportunity requirements 

that apply to DOL employees, 

applicants for DOL employment, 

and individuals who apply to, 

participate in, work for, or come 

into contact with programs and 

activities that are conducted by 

or receive financial assistance 

from DOL. If you experience 

discrimination while participating 

in a program supported by DOL, 

visit the Civil Rights Center 

website for information on how 

to file a complaint.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

RESEARCH AND 

ASSESSMENT OF THE LGBT 

WORKER EXPERIENCE 

What gets measured gets done – and 

what gets documented through data 

and research gets understood and 

incorporated into policy decisions 

that affect workers and their families. 

We need to learn more about the LGBT 

community’s economic and employment 

experiences, and DOL is making strides to 

include LGBT workers and their families 

in its surveys and other research.

For example, the National Compensation 

Survey is a survey of employers by 

the Department’s Bureau of Labor 

Statistics that gathers data about 

worker compensation and benefits. 

In 2011, for the first time, this survey 

asked employers whether they provide 

domestic partner benefits. That question 

is now a regular part of the survey, 

yielding important new data on health 

insurance and pension benefits for 

unmarried same-sex and opposite-sex 

domestic partners.5

 

Another example is the FMLA survey. 

This periodic survey by DOL examines 

access to and use of family and medical 

leave, and has both employee and 

employer components. In 2012, this 

survey expanded to ask employees their 

sexual orientation. This survey is one 

example of how DOL is developing more 

data on LGBT worker experiences.

In addition, in 2015, two important 

surveys run by the Department’s Bureau 

of Labor Statistics, the Current Population 

Survey and the Consumer Expenditure 

Survey, will begin identifying same-sex 

married couples among respondents. 

This will provide important information 

about family types, which can be used in 

research and policy-making. 

These are only first steps. DOL will 

continue to look for opportunities to 

include LGBT workers in its research and 

statistical work.

11
TRANSGENDER EQUALITY 

AND INCLUSION IN THE 

WORKPLACE

For LGBT workers, and for transgender 

workers in particular, going to work or 

applying for a job can mean experiencing 

discrimination, harassment and 

even violence – and being forced to 

choose between your identity and your 

livelihood. But growing awareness has 

led to action across the country. Now 

19 states and the District of Columbia 

explicitly protect workers from 

discrimination on the basis of gender 

identity. Courts, as well as DOL and 

other federal agencies, have recognized 

that discrimination on the basis of 

gender identity is sex discrimination. 

And increasingly in workplaces across 

the country, employers are leading 

with policies that acknowledge that 

discrimination against transgender 

employees is unacceptable, and are 

implementing more inclusive practices.

Secretary Perez has committed DOL to 

increase protection for transgender 

workers in American workplaces, and 

to examine and update our internal 

policies and practices to promote greater 

inclusion for transgender people. These 

efforts explicitly recognize obligations 

not to discriminate on the basis of gender 

identity, as well as apply rules against 

sex discrimination to ban discrimination 

against individuals who identify as 

transgender, or who express their gender 

in a nonconforming way.

In DOL’s guidance documents and 

proposed regulations, we are interpreting 

bans on sex discrimination to ensure 

civil rights protection for transgender 

workers inside and outside the 

Department. Consistent with a number 

of earlier federal court rulings, the Equal 

Employment Opportunity Commission 

ruled in Macy v. Holder that Title VII’s 

ban on sex discrimination includes 

discrimination based on gender identity. 

DOL has adopted this interpretation in its 

own enforcement work. 

According to the 2013 National Compensation Survey, 28% of civilian 

workers had access to survivor pension benefits for spouses, while 15% 

had access for unmarried same-sex domestic partners.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

For example, OFCCP issued a directive 

stating it would accept complaints of 

discrimination based on gender identity 

as a form of sex discrimination from 

individuals who work for or apply for jobs 

with federal contractors, and has published 

new proposed sex discrimination 

regulations that take the same position. 

The proposed regulations would bring 

guidelines dating back to the 1970s in line 

with the needs of workers today, including 

protecting workers from losing out on job 

opportunities because of sex stereotypes 

or not conforming to gender norms. These 

efforts complement the legal rights for 

transgender workers now available as a 

result of Executive Order 13672.

One important aspect of transgender 

inclusion in the workplace is safe 

access to restroom facilities. To support 

workers and employers, the Occupational 

Safety and Health Administration, DOL’s 

enforcement agency for workplace 

safety known as OSHA, has developed 

a new guide on access to bathrooms for 

transgender individuals. This publication 

provides guidance to employers on best 

practices regarding restroom access for 

transgender workers.

OSHA already requires employers to 

provide employees with toilet facilities, 

to protect employees from the health 

effects created when toilets are not 

available. The core principle of this new 

guidance is that all employees, including 

transgender employees, should have 

access to restrooms that correspond to 

their gender identity.

13

(L to R): Harper Jean Tobin, NCTE Director of Policy; Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary, USDOL-OSHA; 

Lisa Mottet, NCTE Deputy Executive Director at alliance signing ceremony (April 27, 2015).
OSHA has also developed a formal 

alliance with the National Center for 

Transgender Equality, known as NCTE, 

to help distribute this bulletin and 

educate workers and employers on 

OSHA and their rights.

An essential way to serve and support 

workers is to be a good employer, and 

many businesses already know how 

strong and inclusive employment 

practices that support LGBT workers are 

both the right thing to do and good for 

the bottom line. In fact, most Fortune 

500 companies already have nondiscrimination policies in place that 

protect LGBT workers, with nearly 9 in 

10 covering sexual orientation and 2 in 3 

including gender identity. Because at DOL 

we employ thousands of employees at 

offices around the country, we recognize 

employer obligations for ensuring 

equality for LGBT workers. Both in its 

formal documents, and in its informal 

practices, the Department strives to apply 

best practices in our own workplace, 

and to provide resources and support for 

employers seeking the same.

As highlighted above, via Executive 

Order 13672, President Obama 

explicitly expanded federal contractor 

non-discrimination requirements for 

employees and applicants to protect 

workers from discrimination based 

on gender identity. The President also 

expanded existing federal sector equal 

employment policies to cover gender 

identity. This second action applied 

the same standard that the Department 

had already embraced to the whole 

federal workforce.

In the 2011 National 

Transgender Discrimination 

Survey, 90% of transgender 

workers surveyed reported 

experiencing harassment, 

discrimination and 

mistreatment at work or 

taking steps like hiding who 

they are to avoid it. 

WHO WE ARE

DOL Occupational 

Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA) 

Our agency enforces federal 

laws to assure safe and healthful 

workplaces. If you have a health 

or safety concern about your 

workplace, visit osha.gov/workers 

to get help.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

Starting in 2011, DOL began updating 

its own workplace standards and 

practices to explicitly include gender 

identity and support inclusive 

practices for transgender people. 

The Department’s policies require 

managers and co-workers not to 

discriminate against transgender 

employees or those who express their 

gender in nonconforming ways. The 

first step was adding gender identity 

as a protected category within the 

Department’s own equal employment 

opportunity policy. The Civil Rights 

Center, which implements that policy, 

has provided internal guidance 

for managers and employees. This 

document sets out employee and 

applicant rights and manager and 

supervisor responsibilities with 

respect to transgender workers. In 

2015, the Civil Rights Center updated 

and reissued this guide to incorporate 

additional best practices. In addition, 

a new set of Departmental Guidelines 

on Creating an Inclusive Workplace for 

Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming 

and Transitioning Employees, from 

DOL’s Human Resources Center, will help 

the Department provide a more inclusive 

and welcoming workplace.

In addition to the new guidance, the 

Department is training its staff on all of 

our policies. In 2014 and 2015, OFCCP 

provided training first to its managers and 

then to all staff in partnership with the 

NCTE. And all DOL employees, including 

managers and supervisors, receive 

regular equal employment opportunity 

training that includes non-discrimination 

obligations on the basis of sexual 

orientation and gender identity. 

Bringing your whole self to work 

is fundamental to human dignity. 

Workplaces that respect individuals as 

they are, and value employees based on 

their skills and talents, find that diversity 

and inclusion is a strategy that pays off. 

DOL strives to be that kind of a workplace 

and to support workers and employers 

seeking to do the same.

15
THE WAY FORWARD

At DOL we are proud of our 

accomplishments on behalf of LGBT 

workers and job seekers, and their 

families. For all our progress, there 

remains more work to do. These results 

represent our progress so far, and we will 

continue building on each of these efforts 

in the years to come. 

This is a period of remarkable change, 

as we implement new policies and 

expand access to our programs. 

We will be investigating new sexual 

orientation and gender identity 

discrimination claims under Executive 

Order 13672. We will support LGBT 

workers and their families to understand 

and exercise their rights to family and 

medical leave and to safe and inclusive 

workplaces free from discrimination. 

We will also support employers through 

technical assistance and training and 

will highlight best practices for use in 

their workplaces.

Secretary Perez: 

“The Department of Labor, more than any 

other workplace, must strive to guarantee 

a level playing field for all employees. 

We work best when the Department fully 

includes individuals with diverse 

backgrounds, experience, and judgment, 

and utilizes the maximum capabilities of 

every employee. As the Secretary of Labor, 

I pledge to foster an environment free from 

discrimination, where diversity and inclusion 

are valued at all levels.” 

(February 2015)

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THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

Serving as the “Department of 

Opportunity” for all workers, including 

LGBT workers, is the right thing to do – for 

the individuals who deserve a level playing 

field and a fair chance to compete, for the 

businesses that benefit from diverse and 

inclusive workplaces, and for the families 

and communities that depend on all of 

them to succeed. We will continue to make 

this part of the work we do every day to 

promote and protect opportunity for all. 

This report was developed by the Department of Labor’s 

interagency LGBT Policy Working Group. To learn more 

about the Working Group and all the actions described 

above, please visit http://www.dol.gov/asp/policydevelopment/lgbt-workers.htm. 

Internal U.S. Department of Labor poster 

commemorating Bayard Rustin in conjunction with 

Pride Month. (June 2011).

17
NOTES

1 Movement Advancement Project, Non-Discrimination Laws, retrieved from http://www.lgbtmap.org/equality-maps/non_

discrimination_laws (last visited May 21, 2015); http://www.hrc.org/resources/entry/lgbt-equality-at-the-fortune-500

(last visited May 21, 2015).

2 Calculated by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs based on 2013 EEO-1 reports filed by employers indicating 

contractor status and 2013 Bureau of Labor Statistics workforce data.

3 Jamie M. Grant, et al. (2011), Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, retrieved 

from http://endtransdiscrimination.org/report.html (last visited May 21, 2015).

4 The Williams Institute, New U.S. Department of Labor Rule Amending the Definition of Spouse in the Family and Medical 

Leave Act Could Impact up to 118,000 Same-Sex Spouses (Feb. 24, 2015), retrieved from http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.

edu/press/press-releases/new-u-s-department-of-labor-rule-amending-the-definition-of-spouse-in-the-family-andmedical-leave-act-could-impact-up-to-118000-same-sex-spouses/ (last visited May 21, 2015). 

5 Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014), Employer-Sponsored Benefits Extended to Domestic Partners, Beyond the Numbers

3(6), retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-3/employer-sponsored-benefits-extended-to-domestic-partners.htm

(last visited May 21, 2015).

18
THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR • ADVANCING LGBT WORKPLACE RIGHTS

United States Department of Labor