Obama’s Labor Department Refuses To Say If It’s Protecting Trans Workers

[xchrom]

http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/obamas-labor-department-refuses-to-say-if-its-protecting-tra



WASHINGTON — A senior adviser to Labor Secretary Tom Perez refused Friday to answer a longstanding question about whether the department is protecting transgender employees of federal contractors from discrimination.

In April 2012, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that Title VII’s sex discrimination ban includes gender identity-based discrimination against transgender people. Under the policies of the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), it was expected that office would enforce an executive order that bans federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sex, among other factors, to include a ban on gender identity-based discrimination.

For the past 20 months, however, Labor Department officials — including former Secretary Hilda Solis and OFCCP Director Patricia Shiu — have refused to say whether the department is including transgender workers in its enforcement of the existing executive order.

On Friday, Labor Department spokesman Carl Fillichio told BuzzFeed that Perez would not speak with BuzzFeed about a series of questions relating to LGBT rights, including a question about Executive Order 11246, at this time. Asked if the department would instead provide answers in writing to the questions, previously submitted to Fillichio, he responded Friday afternoon, “Thanks. [W]ill decline that too, as we have nothing new on this.”

[Fearless]

1. We'll have to wait for their opinion to "evolve".