Action Alert – Wolf Requiring Businesses to Extend Special Rights

AFA of PA ACTION ALERT

April 13, 2016

Issue

Governor Wolf Requiring Businesses to Extend Special Rights to Homosexuals

Details

Last week Governor Wolf signed two executive orders expanding special rights for homosexuals and transgenders by including “sexual orientation and gender identity or expression.”   One was simply extending an executive order that Governor Rendell had put in place, and Governor Corbett did not rescind, and another one would extend to all future contracts with the state and all future recipients of grants from the state –  requiring them to not discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity.  This means all companies/vendors who contract with the state or schools/organizations that receive grants from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania must hire homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders – no exceptions.

The first executive order says ” no agency under the Governor’s jurisdiction shall discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religious creed, ancestry, union membership, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, national origin, AIDS or HIV status, or disability.”

The second one will  ” ensure that all contracting processes of commonwealth agencies will be nondiscriminatory and that all businesses contracting with the commonwealth as well as all grantees should use nondiscriminatory practices in subcontracting, hiring, promoting, and other labor matters.”

Governor Wolf signed these executive orders to put pressure on the legislature to pass HB 1510  and SB 974   which would add “sexual orientation and gender identity or expression” to the PA Human Relations Act and impact all businesses with four or more employees.  However, remember SB 506  has been introduced by Senator Jay Costa which would change the definition of employer under the PA Human Relations Act to mean all businesses which employ one person!    The PA Human Relations Act impacts employment, housing and public accommodation.

Click here for more information and action steps.