President Signs Historic LGBT Executive Order

President Obama signed an historic executive order Monday morning prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating against workers on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

"Thanks to your passion and advocacy and the irrefutable rightness of your cause, our government – a government of the people, by the people and for the people – will become just a little bit fairer," Obama told advocates gathered at the White House.

Because Congress failed to extend these workplace protections to LGBT employees of federal contractors and of the federal government, the president took the initiative. And despite the objections of religious leaders, faith-based groups will not be exempt.

"I'm going to do what I can, with the authority I have, to act," Obama said. "The rest of you, of course, need to keep putting pressure on Congress to pass federal legislation that resolves this problem once and for all."

Every year, in many parts of the country, American workers aren't hired, are fired, don't receive job promotions, or bear verbal and physical abuse from co-workers and supervisors simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

That's why CWA and our allies are fighting to bring fairness and equality to the workplace by including LGBT protections in our contracts. Workers should not have to hide who they are out of fear of losing their jobs.