The White House is preparing to
announce an executive order barring contractors doing business with
the federal government from discriminating on the basis of sexual
orientation or gender identity.
BuzzFeed.com
quoted an unnamed White House official as saying: “Following on his
pledge for this to be a year of action to expand opportunity for all
Americans, the President has directed his staff to prepare for his
signature an Executive Order that prohibits federal contractors from
discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
The action would build upon existing protections, which generally
prohibit federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating
in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex,
or national origin. This is consistent with the President’s views
that all Americans, LGBT or not, should be treated with dignity and
respect.”
“Executive action to ban fed
contractors from discriminating against #LGBT workers is good for
America & for business,” White House senior adviser Valerie
Jarrett tweeted.
President Barack Obama has previously
ruled out such an order, saying he prefers passage of the Employment
Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) – which would apply to all businesses
– and called on Congress to act. ENDA has cleared the Senate but
House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio has blocked the legislation in the
House.
“By issuing an executive order
prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT
people, the President will not only create fairer workplaces across
the country, he will demonstrate to Congress that adopting federal
employment protections for LGBT people is good policy and good for
business,” said Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights
Campaign (HRC), the nation's leading LGBT rights advocate. “The
White House statement today is promising, and we look forward to
seeing the details of the executive order.”
Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, ENDA's
champion in the Senate, applauded the move but also called on Boehner
to act.
“No more excuses,” Merkley, a
Democrat, said in a statement. “It's way past time for Speaker
Boehner to allow ENDA to have a vote in the House. No one should be
fired because of who they are or whom they love.”