Supreme Court bans employment bias against gay and transgender people

Employment discrimination against individuals because of their gay or transgender status necessarily entails discrimination based on sex and therefore is unlawful under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the U.S. Supreme Court decided on June 15, 2020. The 6-3 ruling resolved disagreements among the circuit courts about the scope of Title VII’s protections for sexual orientation and gender identity. As Justice Neil Gorsuch, who delivered the Court’s opinion, stated: “At bottom, these cases involve no more than the straightforward application of legal terms with plain and settled meanings.”

‘Intentionally treats a person worse because of sex’

The Supreme Court expanded protections against workplace discrimination, concluding bias based on homosexuality or transgender status constitutes discrimination on the basis of one’s sex. Accordingly, the Court held an employer that intentionally treats a person worse because of sex—such as by firing the individual for actions or attributes it would tolerate in someone of another sex—discriminates against that person in violation of Title VII.

In the opinion, Justice Gorsuch strictly construed Title VII’s command that it’s “unlawful . . . for an employer to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.” Justice Gorsuch interpreted the statute in accordance with the meaning of the terms at the time of its enactment in 1964.