Sen. Carper Welcomes President Obamas Employment Non-Discrimination Executive Order

WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) issued the following statement after President Obama signed an executive order banning federal contractors from discriminating against employees based on sexual orientation. In March Sen. Carper joined more than 175 members of Congress in writing to the president, urging him to issue this executive order.

“Employees should always be judged by the quality of the work they do and nothing more. Today’s executive action, which only applies to federal contractors, will ensure that even more American workers across the country can’t be fired simply because of their sexual orientation. President Obama has once again put the federal government on the right side of history when it comes to protecting workers from employment discrimination.

“In the First State, some of our biggest employers and companies, including DuPont, DOW, Bank of America, T.D. Bank, Christiana Care, and the University of Delaware, have been national leaders on this issue by already enacting their own policies to protect the rights of all of their employees.  Similarly, Delaware is one of 18 states nationwide that protects the rights of all workers, having passed a law several years ago that protects the gay community from workplace discrimination.  Unfortunately those protections aren’t enjoyed by all Americans.

“Last year, I supported the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to explicitly prohibit employers across the country from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation. Unfortunately, my colleagues in the House haven’t scheduled a vote on the bipartisan, Senate-passed bill. I will continue to urge the House to act this year and extend these essential workplace protections to the entire country.”

To see a copy of the executive order, click here.

To see a copy of the letter Sen. Carper sent to President Obama along with other members of Congress, click here.

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