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How A Law From 1964 Suddenly Protects Transgender Government Workers
Attorney General Eric Holder released a memo Thursday outlining the Justice Department’s decision to redefine its interpretation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to explicitly prohibit workplace discrimination against transgender people.
Effective immediately, the Justice Department can now prosecute on behalf of people who claim to have been discriminated against by state and local public employers based on sex identity.
“The federal government’s approach to this issue has also evolved over time,” Holder wrote in the memo, adding that the new interpretation is the “most straightforward reading” of the law.
This is essentially a 180 from their decision in 2006 under George W. Bush that stated the law did not cover transgender workplace protections.
Holder’s memo comes on the tail of a series of moves from the Obama administration to grant stronger workplace rights to transgender employees. In July, Obama ordered protection for gay/trans employees of the federal government or companies with active federal contracts.
The Justice Department has no authority, however, to sue private employers, so the memo does not affect them.
via LGBTQ Nation
Dan Tracer
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