Ending workplace discrimination is the right thing to do – and putting a law on the books that does just that is closer than ever to reality.
This week, the U.S. Senate passed the Employer Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in a bipartisan, two-to-one vote. The bill bans workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
According to the New York Times, this is the first time in the Senate’s history that it has voted to include gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in the country’s nondiscrimination law.
We at Levi Strauss & Co. applaud the Senate’s action, and we encourage the U.S. House of Representatives to follow suit.
We believe that our company’s values and commitment to diversity – including the adoption of non-discrimination policies based on sexual orientation and gender identity – have improved our company’s ability to compete by attracting the best and the brightest employees. By weaving together an employee tapestry made up of all kinds of people, we can better serve consumers.
In our home state of California, where this company was founded 160 years ago, laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are already on the books.
But in too many states, such indisputable protection does not exist. That’s why ENDA is needed. An employee shouldn’t have to worry that something as simple as his sexual orientation could cost him his job.
We look to Washington, D.C. and the House of Representatives to take the next step to correct the situation and pass ENDA, which President Obama has said he’ll sign in to law.
Simply put, it’s the right thing to do.
