Governor Wolf’s Executive Orders Protect Employees of Government Contractors from Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity Discrimination
The employees of government contractors now have much greater protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. In response to the General Assembly’s delay in passing the Pennsylvania Fairness Act (a bill intended to broaden protections available to all Pennsylvania workers that has seen no progress since it was referred to the State House on September 8, 2015), Governor Tom Wolf took action on April 7, 2016, signing two executive orders that protect not only state employees, but also employees of contractors doing business within Pennsylvania.
The first executive order, Order 2016-04, prohibits discrimination 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.” Order 2016-04 is premised on the belief “that the employment practices of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania must be nondiscriminatory in intent and effect to promote public confidence in the fairness and integrity of government.” In addition to prohibiting discrimination, Order 2016-04 bans sexual harassment based on the above-referenced bases and empowers the Secretary of the Administration to “supervise the development, implementation, and enforcement of the Commonwealth’s equal employment opportunity programs through the Bureau of Workforce Planning, Development, and Equal Opportunity.” Order 2016-04 rescinds and replaces Executive Order 2003-10.
The second executive order, Order 2016-05, guarantees that “discrimination by reason of race, gender, creed, color, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression does not exist with respect to the award, selection, or performance of any contracts or grants issued by Commonwealth agencies.” Order 2016-05 is premised on Pennsylvania’s continued commitment “to promoting the prosperity and economic growth of all businesses and citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, regardless of race, gender, creed, color, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression,” and designates “the Department of General Services as the central agency to develop and manage Commonwealth agency programs to ensure that discrimination . . . does not exist with respect to the award, selection, or performance of any contracts or grants issued by Commonwealth agencies.” Order 2016-05 rescinds and replaces Executive Order 2006-02.
Governor’s Wolf’s actions are intended to demonstrate Pennsylvania’s direct opposition to the recent North Carolina Bill requiring transgender individuals to use public restrooms corresponding to the biological sex on their birth certificate, as well as a Mississippi Bill allowing businesses to deny service to homosexual customers based on religious grounds. According to Governor Wolf, the passage of the North Carolina Bill, coupled with the stagnation of the Pennsylvania Fairness Act, is “a call to pass non-discrimination legislation in Pennsylvania now.” The passage of both executive orders garnered widespread support from a variety of anti-discrimination organizations, including the ACLU, the Anti-Defamation League, Equality Pennsylvania, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, as well as Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and Philadelphia’s City Council.