All Employees Deserve Civil Rights Protections

Retailers Applaud SCOTUS Decision: LGBTQ Employees Protected

By [ Brian Dodge ]
Washington, DC
06/15/2020

Brian Dodge, president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), the trade association for America’s leading retailers, issued the following statement in response to today’s United States Supreme Court decision holding that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects LGBTQ employees:

“Today’s landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming that LGBTQ employees cannot be discriminated against in the workplace is cause for celebration. Leading retailers are committed to ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for all people, whether they are employees, customers, or business partners. To promote inclusivity at work, everyone should feel protected from discrimination and have access to the same legal federal protections. RILA and our members are thrilled the Supreme Court has unequivocally delivered these rights to our LGBTQ colleagues and friends.

“RILA and our members are deeply committed to promoting an industry that is diverse, skilled, and innovative. As an industry, we understand that diverse perspectives make us stronger and consistently strive to build inclusive workplaces. Much work still needs to be done, but today’s decision marks an encouraging step forward which we fervently applaud.”

This is an issue RILA has previously championed by supporting the Equality Act that passed the House of Representatives May 17, 2019.

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RILA is the US trade association for leading retailers. We convene decision-makers, advocate for the industry, and promote operational excellence and innovation. Our aim is to elevate a dynamic industry by transforming the environment in which retailers operate.

RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs, and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities, and distribution centers domestically and abroad.