Bostock v. Clayton County: Supreme Court Protects Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the Workplace
On June 17, 2020 by Schnader in Labor and EmploymentJo Bennett and Brian M. Wallen published a client alert, “Bostock v. Clayton County: Supreme Court Protects Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the Workplace.”
On June 15, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal law prohibiting “sex” discrimination in the workplace also protects against bias based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In a 6-3 decision, Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority that “sex” necessarily served as the reference point for bias based on sexual orientation or gender identity and thus sexual orientation and gender identity are protected traits under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). “If the employer fires the male employee for no reason other than the fact he is attracted to men, the employer discriminates against him for traits or actions it tolerates in his female colleague,” Gorsuch wrote in Bostock v. Clayton County.