7 Impactful Ways to Make Your Office More LGBTQ-Friendly

When Pride Month begins each June, companies race to show support for LGBTQ people with social media posts and rainbow logo flips. This gesture shows solidarity for a community that has battled for equal rights in all aspects of their lives. That corporate support likely played a role in the US Supreme Court’s 2020 decision protecting employees from LGBTQ workplace discrimination, as 206 companies signed an amicus brief in the 6-3 decision.

Despite public support, LGBTQ employees still face challenges based on their identities and orientation. For example, a 2021 study by the Williams Institute of Law (UCLA) revealed the following:

•    46% of LGBTQ employees experienced unfair treatment at work at some point in their lives (9% in the past year)
•    38% of LGBTQ workers reported experiencing harassment at work
•    Half of working LGBTQ individuals are not out to their current supervisor (26% are not out to any co-workers)
•    LGBTQ employees who were out to at least one co-worker reported significantly more verbal (37.8%) and physical (25%) harassment than ones who weren’t (7.4% for both verbal and physical harassment)

As iHire Chief People Officer Lisa Shuster explains, “Changing your logo to a rainbow design or flying a Pride flag is a nice gesture to demonstrate solidarity, but some LGBTQ employees and citizens may consider these acts performative. Companies must go further to be an ally by implementing inclusive employment practices.”

With these issues in mind, some inclusive employment policies for LGBTQ workers can take your company’s support from merely a public display to a safe and fulfilling work environment behind closed doors that benefits your employees and company alike.

Promote Your Company to LGBTQ Candidates

Two ways to create an LGBTQ-friendly environment for candidates are to promote your job openings where they are and write your job postings in gender-neutral and LGBTQ-affirming ways:

• Replacing he or she pronouns with you or they
• Stating your non-discrimination/harassment policy as it pertains to the LGBTQ community and other marginalized groups
• Highlighting your DE&I programs and inclusive benefits
• Removing unconscious bias by seeking feedback from current employees

Once you have finished writing the job ad, you should make it visible to the community by posting it on professional sites dedicated to LGBTQ talent in addition to other job boards and industry-focused communities. Being present at professional recruiting events and job fairs for LGBTQ professionals is another way to show that your company is a welcoming place for them to work.

Ensure Company Benefits Apply Equally to LGBTQ Workers

Company benefit packages like healthcare and retirement investments are valuable to all employees. However, with marriage equality and the recognition of same-sex domestic partnerships happening relatively recently, those benefits may not apply equally to LGBTQ employees. These benefits are crucial to attracting and retaining talent. Ensuring your benefits are inclusive involves:

• Making sure your health insurance policy definition of spouse includes same-sex spouses (with the same documentation required for same- and different-sex spouses)
• Providing healthcare benefits to domestic partners
• Offering Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) benefits that allow employees to apply FMLA to care for domestic partners as well as their children
• Including the death of a domestic partner or their immediate family on bereavement leave
• Ensuring your health benefits include coverage for transitioning/gender-affirming services (while also working with employees who need time off to obtain these services)

Update Your Nondiscrimination Policy to Specifically Cover LGBTQ Employees

Putting a formal policy in writing that discrimination and harassment are unacceptable and subject to disciplinary action is one of the most direct ways to show support to the LGBTQ community. These policies should be clearly communicated and easily accessible, with specific rules and consequences detailing what types of behavior are inappropriate.

Start an Employee Resource Group for LGBTQ Workers

A tangible way to support LGBTQ employees is by building and empowering an employee resource group (ERG). At their best, ERGs can focus on employer’s LGBTQ-related policies and recommend areas of improvement, such as:

•    Identifying opportunities for businesses to engage LGBTQ consumers
•    Improving LGBTQ employee recruitment efforts
•    Encouraging a company’s CEO to publicly endorse LGBTQ-inclusive legislation
•    Creating connection opportunities for LGBTQ employees to find peers

Educate Your Employees

Decades of bias against the LGBTQ community don’t disappear overnight. Education sessions such as anti-discrimination/harassment training should already be part of every company’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. Still, more is required to ensure marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ community feel welcome in the office. Diversity training sessions, with programs aimed at all employees and more targeting managers, provide learning opportunities that foster an inclusive environment. This can include workshops, training sessions, conferences, and email newsletters.

Seek Feedback from Employees

Anonymous surveys are a valuable resource to learn what employees want and how satisfied they are with the company’s culture in general. The anonymous aspect of the survey is even more important for LGBTQ employees who may not be comfortable coming out to their colleagues. It provides a safe space for giving constructive feedback on how welcoming the work environment is to them and where your organization can improve to allow workers to be their authentic selves.

Support LGBTQ Organizations

People value authenticity, and the LGBTQ community is no different. Providing financial support to LGBTQ organizations and giving your time by being present at Pride events and celebrations shows that your company walks the walk in supporting your LGBTQ employees and their entire community.

Looking for additional ways to drive positive change in your organization? Learn more about inclusive hiring and retention practices in our resource center.