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Just before the Thanksgiving holiday, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm (D) signed Executive Directive 2007-24, which protects employees in the state's executive branch from discrimination and harassment based on "gender identity or expression." The directive, signed on November 21, 2007, states, "[t]o build a more inclusive Michigan our state government must be a model of tolerance, accessibility, equal opportunity -- reaching out to people, knocking down barriers, and dispelling prejudices which hold Michigan back." The directive adds "gender identity or expression" to a list of other prohibited forms of discrimination and harassment, including religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, height, weight, marital status, partisan considerations, disability and genetic information. The directive can be found at the following website. According to the Triangle Foundation, a civil rights, advocacy and victim services organization for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, the directive protects nearly 50,000 Michigan employees in the state's executive branch, which employs 95 percent of all state employees.
The directive defines "gender identity or expression" as the "perception by an individual or another person of the gender identity, appearance, behavior, or expression of the individual whether or not that gender identity, appearance, behavior or expression is different from the gender identity, appearance, behavior or expression traditionally associated with the sex assigned to the individual at birth." Reporting requirements established by the Civil Service Commission and regulations established by the State Personnel Director relating to discriminatory harassment apply and, as provided in rules promulgated by the Civil Service Commission, an employee who engages in discriminatory harassment may be disciplined by the appointing authority, up to and including dismissal. Bona fide occupational qualifications and affirmative action plans may be authorized by an appointing authority within a department, board, commission or other agency if approved in advance by the State Personnel Director. Different standards for compensation or different terms, conditions, or privileges of employment under a bona fide seniority or merit system are also allowed.
Pending before the Michigan Legislature is H.B. 4160, which would add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression to Michigan's civil rights law. The bill was introduced in January by Representative Steven Tobocman (D) and currently has 19 cosponsors. The bill is has been referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), notes that 13 states and the District of Columbia prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in private and public employment sector. Those states are: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York and Wisconsin have state laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation only. The HRC further notes that Kansas, Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania protect state employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and Arizona, Montana, Louisiana, Virginia and Delaware prohibit sexual orientation discrimination in state employment.
For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.
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