Weighing Equal Benefits

Everybody should be treated equally, period. Ensuring equal treatment, however, can be complex. Consider, for instance, that the City of Portland has policies against discrimination in employment on the basis of, among other things, marital status and sexual orientation. However, contractors who do work with the City currently can treat their employees unequally. By example, they can provide benefits to opposite-sex couples but not to same-sex couples. This unequal treatment needs to be changed.

Over the past year, we have been talking to Portland contractors and other interested parties about adding a level of accountability to these policies by enacting an Equal Benefits Ordinance (EBO). An EBO would require that contractors doing work on behalf of the City do all they can to provide an equal opportunity in benefits to their employees with domestic partners as they do to employees with spouses.

We're planning a Town Hall on Thursday, January 19th to find out what you think about an EBO.

Related Documents

• Draft Ordinance (PDF)
• City Contracting Requirements (including EEO Certification)
• City Code – Equal Opportunity
• City Code - Civil Rights

Media Mentions

• "A Great Start," Portland Mercury - Editorial, January 27
• "Adams suggests expansion of ‘equal benefits’ provision," Portland Tribune, February 18
• "Settling for Less," Portland Mercury, April 21
• "Could We Be Less Progressive?" Portland Mercury, July 28
• "It’s Something, Anyway," Portland Mercury, August 11
• "EBO on Deck," Portland Mercury, December 8
• "Council seeks to extend benefits," The Oregonian, December 9
• " Portland Moves To Broaden Gay Benefits Law," 365gay.com, December 9
• "On gay rights, political pressure doesn't equate to real progress," The Oregonian - Editorial, December 13
• "Friends with Benefits," Portland Mercury, March 23

Weblogs

• The Equal Benefits Ordinance, December 9
• Equal Benefits Ordinance takes flight in Portland, BlueOregon, December 9
• Portland to extend benefits to domestic partners via city contractors, Gay Rights Watch, December 9

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