![\"A](\"http:\/\/www.totalengagementconsulting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/same-gender-couple-feb2016.jpg\")
<\/a>A hospital admittance clerk could claim “religious objections” and refuse to admit one of these women who is covered under her spouse’s health insurance.<\/p><\/div>This blog examines the discriminatory harm that can occur if Georgia if this bill becomes law with some possible real scenarios. And here is a link to use<\/strong><\/a> if you want to take some action after reading this blog.<\/p>\n NOTE: LGBT is the abbreviation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender<\/p>\n On March 29, 2016, I have been invited to be a workshop presenter at the annual Atlanta SHRM (Society of Human Resource Management) conference<\/strong><\/a>. My workshop title is \u201cThe Compelling Business Rationale for LGBT Diversity.\u201d<\/strong><\/a> I have often presented this workshop throughout the southern USA, including in my home state of North Carolina, using the title, \u201cLGBT Diversity \u2013 the New Diversity Initiative for the New South.\u201d However, it seems some state legislatures don\u2019t get this message and want to regress back to the \u201cgood old days\u201d of discrimination and exclusion; and it is within this backdrop that I travel to Georgia later this month.<\/p>\n What started as Georgia House Bill 757 \u201cPastor Protection Act,\u201d which would have enabled religious leaders to refuse to perform same-sex marriages, has been drastically modified and expanded by the Georgia State Senate in their recently passed Senate Bill 284. (Link to bill text.)<\/strong><\/a> It would now \u201cprohibit discriminatory action against a person who believes, speaks, or acts in accordance with a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction that marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman or that sexual relations are properly reserved to such marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n What does this new language now mean? Simply anybody in any capacity can refuse to serve or provide benefits to LGBT people without penalty. Here are some examples of what could happen \u2013 sure, they may seem a little extreme but they are certainly possible within the realm of this proposed law.<\/p>\n Scenario 1:<\/strong> A seriously ill woman is taken to the hospital and covered under her lesbian\u2019s wife\u2019s insurance policy. The admittance clerk could refuse to check her in, saying that admitting a person covered under her same-gender spouses\u2019 insurance violates her religious belief. Meanwhile, while the hospital sorts this out or finds another admittance clerk, the ill woman languishes without needed medical services. A policeman could claim “religious freedom” to refuse to assist a victim of “gay bashing.”<\/p><\/div>Scenario 2:<\/strong> Two young men who just left a gay bar are attacked by a group of five thugs with baseball bats. The first policeman dispatched to the scene realizes that the two guys leaving the gay bar are more than likely a gay couple or boyfriends and believes they deserved to be beat up since they are violating \u201cGod\u2019s law.\u201d He lets the attack continue, and under this new law, he is protected.<\/p>\n Scenario 3:<\/strong> A manager in a large multi-national corporation with offices in Georgia has an employee with a same-gender spouse. Company policy states that a person can have up to an extra week of paid personal leave to be with their spouse or significant other during a catastrophic illness or serious operation. This manager with \u201csincerely held religious beliefs\u201d refuses to provide the time off to his employee. The company cannot take action against this manager. Now the word of this episode has spread nationwide on social media, and the company is having a difficult time getting needed talent to transfer to open positions in Georgia.<\/p>\n Already several businesses in Georgia, including the huge multi-national corporation Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, AT&T, Home Depot and others have spoken out against this business-harming regressive bill. I urge all fair-minded and business-oriented people, companies and organizations to continue to oppose this discriminatory revised bill as it heads back to Georgia House for a re-vote. This blog examines the discriminatory harm that can occur if Georgia if this bill becomes law with some possible real scenarios. And here is a link to use if you want to take some action after reading this blog. NOTE: … Continue reading
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