August 2012 - October 2012
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Out & Equal blog
Join us for these great upcoming learning opportunities:
Town Calls
October 18 - What's new and relevant on the legislative front - ENDA and other key bills update: Just in time for the election!
November 15 - What's the latest on transgender workplace inclusion?(special Transgender Day of Remembrance segment)
Classroom Trainings/Events
September 18 & 19 Training in Atlanta, GA (No Dumb Questions Road Show with Atlanta RA)
October 3-7 Training in Boston, MA
October 21 - 24 SHRM Diversity & Inclusion Conference (Chicago)
Octeber 15 - 28
OutServe Conference (Orlando)
Online Training *All courses will be recorded and available on demand after the class date
This online course is being rescheduled - Creating an LGBT Marketing Program
Featured Out & Equal University Archive Course Dialogues on Gender Identity
$99.95 registration ($84.95 for non-profit, government or educational groups) - Click here for registration information.
Archived training and LGBT Core Courses Package available for details on all courses click here. Email Pat Baillie, Director of Training, for additional discounts for groups of 5 or more or licensing for Workplace Accreditation and details on the LGBT Core Courses. Current Research
Disclosure of Sexual Identity in the Workplace
[Out & Equal webinars and classroom courses are usually submitted to the Society for Human Resources Management's Human Resource Certification Institute. Check to see if you can receive continuing education credits for your participation.]
Trainer's Forum Monthly Trainers' Forum Webinar Thursday, September 20 (new date!),12:00pm (PDT) Moderated by Pat Baillie Upcoming dates for 2012 Trainers Forum
Wednesday, October 16 at 12:00pm (PDT)
Tuesday, November 13 at 10:00am (PDT) Trainer's Forum Archives
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Monthly Insights Thoughts from Pat Baillie, Director of Training & Professional Development
This month I have been traveling and making connections with federal agencies, and had a chance to travel to Germany to work with a company who was interested in creating a global Employee Resource Group (ERG) or network! The energy of both the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Aeronautical and Space Agency (NASA) is inspiring. Despite the fact that LGBT federal employees don't have many of the benefits that corporate employees do, they are still working to make their maximum ability to provide benefits for same sex partnered and transgender employees. One of the main focus areas is to develop allies who can change the climate in the workplace. By being aware of the issues and adding their voices to the discussion, it is a big step toward LGBT employees being able to reach higher levels of engagement as they do their jobs.
On the global scale, working in Germany provided another opportunity to learn what the workplace is like in other countries. I had done a lot of homework on the UK for the Global Summit, but have found that each country in the EU has its own unique history, perspective, and issues when talking about LGBT employees. Although the EU countries have protections against discrimination, the discussion about benefits is being dealt with separately in each country. Companies working to meet the needs of their global workforce are challenged to keep up with the changing political and legal framework just in Europe. And it gets more complicated as you move to other regions around the world. Using sites such as the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex Association (ILGA) can provide good insights into the complex issues countries face. A good wiki page for the situations in Europe is LGBT Rights in Europe.
The key to the advances we are making today, and changes we hope for in the future, still rely on us gathering the facts, telling our stories and being sure we share our successes and challenges with each other around the world!
Sincerely,
Pat Baillie
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Trainers' Corner
News for Out & Equal Certified Trainers
What's the best way for you to learn a new concept or skill? Is it hearing a lecture on it or do you prefer to do the research yourself and find out all the answers? (we do love our Google, don't we?) How about in a classroom? Do you prefer to work in small groups or just want to get to the final test to show you know the materials?
I recently had a chance to work with a group on some ally scenarios that covered typical workplace situations where LGBT issues might come up--new hires, coming out, being out, benefits briefings, office parties, morning coffee talk. I asked the class to break into 6 groups and they each had one of the above scenarios. They got a chance to review the situation, discuss the issues and come up with some suggestions on how an ally might respond in the situation, or how someone could prevent the scenario from happening. I was really pleased as each group reported out, nailed the concepts in the scenario, provided some great insights into the impacts to the LGBT employee and rest of the team, and provided solutions on how to avoid or step in as an ally.
I realized that I had a solid basis to see that each person in the class had learned the cultural competency key points from the earlier lectures, and now had the added component; they could apply the theory to real situations. It was hard to get the groups to stop their discussion because they saw tangible connections to being an ally and events in the workplace. Think about how you can use these principles, moving from discussing LGBT workplace equality to creating that environment!
Join us for our next monthly Trainers' Forum webinar on Thursday, September 20 (NEW DATE), 12:00 pm (PDT). Contact Pat Baillie for more information.
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Current Research
Study of the Month: Disclosure of Sexual Orientation in the Workplace The "Study of the Month" column features LGBTA-related research studies conducted by members of the Society for Industrial & Organizational Psychology (SIOP). SIOP is the premier membership organization for those practicing and teaching Industrial-Organizational Psychology, the scientific study of the workplace. For more information about SIOP, please visit www.siop.org. The motivating factors behind the decision to disclose one's sexual orientation may be relevant information for organizations that wish to focus their diversity and inclusion efforts on the lesbian, gay and bisexual community. The current study is a national sample of both LGB and heterosexual employees. Participants responded to an online survey pertaining to the disclosure of sexual identity in the workplace. In the opinion of both heterosexual and LGB employees, the top reasons to disclose one's sexual identity were to 1) establish a sense of authenticity and 2) to improve co-worker interactions. For both groups, the most important reasons to keep one's sexual identity to oneself were 1) possible discrimination 2) and a valuation of privacy. Believing disclosure is important, however, did not predict whether or not LGB employees would be disclosed at work. The results suggest that only removing discriminatory barriers may not encourage those employees who value disclosing (almost 50% of study participants) to be open about their sexual orientation at work. Encouraging initiatives focused on authentic living and positive co-worker interactions may prompt LGB employees who value disclosing their sexual orientation to be themselves at work. Disclosure is an important experience to many, but unique for all types of individuals. There may not be a catch-all means to approaching the issue, but understanding the motivating forces behind the disclosure process can help organizational professionals improve the working experience of LGB individuals.
This study was presented at the annual Society for Industrial & Organizational Psychology conference in April of 2012 by Natasha Buxo, Jacob M. Waldrup & Valentina Bruk-Lee. For more information, please contact Jacob at jake.waldrup@gmail.com.
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Out & Equal Workplace Advocates™ is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.
Out & Equal is committed to ending employment discrimination for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees. We believe that people should be judged by the work they do, not by their sexual orientation or gender identity. Every day, we work to protect and empower employees to be productive and successful-so they can support themselves, their families, and contribute to achieving a world free of discrimination for everyone.
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