It’s a hard fact, but discrepancies are real between how LGBTQ +people and their straight counterparts live. Currently, roughly 165 million LGBTQ+ Americans and their friends and families  live in states without complete protections for LGBTQ+ people. And in the majority of states, protections against discrimination in housing and public accommodations don’t exist.

At best, LGBTQ+ people have a patchwork of protections that can have real consequences for their lives throughout the U.S. 

Taking it to the Supreme Court

On the plus side, on June 15, 2020 The Supreme Court delivered one of the biggest wins in LGBTQ+ rights since the court legalized gay marriage in 2015. Last summer, it expanded Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The federal law prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. Last summer, the high court expanded the “sex” qualifier of the law to include sexual orientation and gender identity. 

But those protections don’t necessarily extend to discrimination in housing, education, and public accomodations. And, this year, the high court will decide another case that may allow businesses with religious objections to deny services to same-sex couples for things like weddings.

How states differ in LGBTQ+ protections

Meanwhile, only twenty-two states and the District of Columbia have passed laws that explicitly ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The majority of states have a patchwork of protections. For example, six have passed laws pertaining to public employees only. One state—Wisconsin—has passed a law banning discrimination based on sexual orientation only. Four states have passed laws banning discrimination against public employees for sexual orientation only.

The remaining 17 states have no laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity at all. 

(Note: Two U.S. territories have banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Three territories have no laws on the issue.)

The gap in Title VII, combined with differences among state laws, created an opportunity for discrimination against LGBTQ+ people not just in the workplace. The Fair Housing Act of 1968 bans discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, and family status, when it comes to the sale, rental, or financing of a home. 

Again, the Fair Housing Act doesn’t include sexual orientation and gender identity. Congress introduced a bill called the Fair and Equal Housing Act in 2019 to expand the protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity, but the bill hasn’t been passed.

Resources for the LGBTQ+ community

Discrimination in the workplace can affect your finances by making it more difficult to get certain jobs, fair pay for work, and promotions. And of course, being unjustly laid off can have a devastating effect on your finances. Just because job discrimination against LGBTQ+ people is now illegal doesn’t mean discrimination goes away. 

In the meantime, if you’ve experienced discrimination based on your sexual identity or gender identity, there are resources you can consult. “Individuals who believe they have been treated differently because of their sexual orientation should first consult whether their state offers any protections,” says Robert C. Bird, professor of business law at the University of Connecticut. 

With the Supreme Court ruling, remember that you’re now protected against discrimination by federal law. Bird suggests checking out the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) website, where you can find more information about federal protections for LGBTQ people. This EEOC investigates claims of discrimination in the workplace. You can file a claim of discrimination on their website. Keep in mind that you typically must file a claim within 180 days of the incident. 

Additionally, Bird recommends “contacting the state’s equivalent employment law agency to better understand the rules in your area.” Some states have their own organizations that enforce state laws against discrimination.

The post How Legal Discrimination in Most States Affects LGBTQ+ People appeared first on Stash Learn.

About one third of gay men and lesbians have reported suffering some form of violence from their family members because of their sexual orientation, according to Lambda Legal, a nonprofit helping to achieve civil rights equality for the LGBTQ community. What’s more, those who have been rejected by family or primary caregivers tend to experience more negative mental health and physical outcomes. 

Even if a young LGBTQ+ person is away from family, for example at college, coming out can be a process that has lasting consequences. For example, if someone has relied on their family for financial support, and been rejected, this person may now be on their own. Without ample income, it might be difficult to afford housing and other basic necessities.

If you’re preparing to come out to your parents and peers, and are concerned about the financial repercussions, here are some steps you can consider taking to prepare. 

Save as much as you can

If you receive some sort of income (say, from a part-time job), set some of it aside in a savings account. This money will come in handy when you need it to cover upfront expenses, such as a deposit on an apartment lease, or fees for books.

David Auten-Schneider, co-founder of the personal finance website Debt Free Guys, says he was raised a Jehovah’s Witness, which made it difficult for him to come out to his parents, especially since they encouraged him to pursue the ministry. He says he earned between $500 and $600 a month working part-time jobs cleaning floors for a grocery store and waiting tables, but even that small sum allowed him to save up $650 for a deposit for his first apartment. 

“I did at 25 what I should have done in my teens and saved some money,” he says. “I believe it’s important for kids to have their own savings account, especially anyone who is living in a home where they know their family will not accept them for who they really are.”

While any dollar amount can go a long way, aim to set aside at least 10% of any income you earn. Consider keeping this money in a savings account in your own name only.  Auten-Schneider also suggests letting a confidant know that you have this account in case something happens to you. 

“Even having a few hundred dollars [can be] enough for a few necessities,” he says.

Seek out college resources

If you’re in school, your college’s student affairs office can help you look for emergency grants, such as through the the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), that offer assistance for housing and school costs. Some have their own funding programs, such as the University of Florida’s Aid-a-Gator, which provides funding for expenses in the event of an emergency. There’s no shame in asking for help when you need it. These programs are designed to help people in a time of need.

Students who can’t afford to pay for basic necessities can also look for a local college food bank through the College & University Food Bank Alliance. It can be a useful resource to ensure you don’t go hungry as you’re getting on your feet financially. 

If you’ve been relying on your family to help you pay for tuition, now is the time to look into scholarships. Campus Pride, a nonprofit organization helping campus groups and student leaders to become more LGBTQ+-friendly, and offers an extensive list of scholarships specifically for those who identify as LGBTQ+l. Your office of student financial aid can also help you with finding scholarships you’re more likely to receive. These can include ones based on financial need or your area of study. 

Connect with your local LGBTQ center

Auten-Schnider suggests connecting to local and online LGBTQ+ support groups, such as ones that specifically help and support LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness. Here, you may be able to find emotional support and other financial resources. 

“Adults in these centers are trained to help LGBTQ+ youth with both affirming and non-affirming families which may be the mentor or guide you need when your parents aren’t there for you,” he says.

Lillian Karabaic, the host of the podcast Oh My Dollar!, works with LGBTQ+ youth who experience homelessness after coming out. She adds that you can ask these groups for support in areas such as  applying for government assistance, getting clothing for job interviews, medical testing, and buying food. Some even help people apply for student loans. 

“Don’t forget to reach out to other [LGBTQ+]  friends…[and ask] around about informal support groups too,” she says. “There’s a reason we call it Chosen Family.”

Create several what-if scenarios

Even if you have savings and a budget, consider creating a game plan for multiple scenarios. You never know how the conversation with your parents will go, or whether someone else will out you. Having a plan in place to fall back on can give you peace of mind.

Create lists of items you may need and want to take, and consider where you’ll pack and store them in the event you need to leave, as well as where you can stay. You may also want to think about how to access your savings account in a pinch. 

All of the above steps may feel intimidating, but don’t give up hope. 

“There are plenty of queer youth who’ve come from seemingly desperate situations that have grown and become remarkably successful and happy members of the LGBTQ community,” Auten-Schneider says. “You have plenty of years ahead to have a good time and you will.”

The post Coming Out? Here’s How You Can Prepare Financially appeared first on Stash Learn.

It was March, 2020, in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sheppard, 44, an accomplished freelance pianist based in Baltimore, Maryland, had performances lined up for the next several months and things were looking up for his savings account. However, cancellations by text kept pouring in.

“Every performance I had disappeared within the span of 48 hours, leaving me with no options for income,” he says.

Sheppard, who identifies as gay, is just one of thousands of LGBTQ Americans who were disproportionately affected  by more than a year of COVID-related lockdowns, job losses and societal shifts.

“I really had to scramble,” Sheppard says. “I raided my savings, went into credit card debt, went on unemployment for the first time ever.” 

The COVID-19 impact: Fewer jobs, more financial crises

According to a research brief by the Human Rights Campaign, LGBTQ+ Americans are more likely to work in industries hardest hit by Covid-19 — think service and entertainment industries, for example. Nearly one third of survey respondents said their hours were cut as a result of Covid-19 compared to about 20 percent of the general population. 

Nearly 65% of LGBTQ+ employees and their families either lost their jobs or had their employment disrupted since the pandemic started, compared to just 45%of non-LGBTQ+ households, according to a report by the Movement Advancement Project. The project, coordinated by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, surveyed households on the impact of the pandemic. 

A staggering 95% of Black LGBTQ+ households and 70% of LGBTQ+ Latinx households reported having at least one serious financial problem since COVID-19 reached pandemic levels, according to the report. And nearly 20%of all LGBTQ+ households reported not getting enough food to eat every day, compared to just 5% of non-LGBTQ+ households.

Before Covid-19, Sheppard estimates he had $5,000 to $6,000 in savings. He had hoped to keep adding to the account without dipping into it, and maybe use some of it for a trip. But with every gig, concert, and performance gone—and no end to the cancellations in sight—he blew through most of that hard-earned cash, and then started amassing credit card debt, just to make ends meet.

“The things I need are still the things I need,” he says, such as housing, food and utilities. And unemployment turned out to be a tangled web of forms with very little pay off because Sheppard is a freelancer with many clients instead of one, steady employer. In the end he says he was able to collect just $550 from unemployment during the entirety of the pandemic.

“Covid-19 has hit many in the LGBTQ+ community hard. Many were already struggling financially, and loss of income during the pandemic has pushed many in the LGBTQ+ community to the brink,” David Rae, president of DRM Wealth Management, based in West Hollywood and Palm Springs, California, says.

Rae, who identifies as gay, estimates about half of his clients are also LGBTQ+.

“Many in the LGBTQ+ community live in cities that were hit hardest by Covid-19,” he adds. “This has led to more job losses, as well as health issues.”

A long history of financial struggles and workplace discrimination 

LGBTQ+ Americans often face unique financial challenges, and they can struggle to grow wealth, even without the pandemic.

Nearly half of the 500 LGBTQ+ respondents in a wide-reaching 2018 Experian survey said they struggle to maintain adequate savings, compared to 38%of the non-LGBTQ+ population surveyed.

Bias and discrimination have caused financial challenges for 62%of LGBTQ+ respondents, who also reported being passed over for jobs or promotions, being harassed at work and higher housing costs due to discrmination. Saving and planning for a stable financial future may also be a privilege that many LGBTQ+ people don’t have the luxury to consider.

LGBTQ+ Americans may also face institutional discrimination in the workplace, even though change is happening at the federal level.  On June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act made discrimination based on sexual oritentation and gender identity illegal.The Equality Act, passed earlier this year by the House, provides more explicit federal protections against employment discrimination based on sex, gender identity and sexual orientation, covering public services and educational institutions and organizations that receive federal funding. It must still pass in the Senate.

But at the state level, discrmination law is much more patch work with 27 states offering no protection specifically for LGBTQ+ Americans. 

Only 23 states and the District of Columbia have laws to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and 22 protect against gender identity discrmination.

Lesbians reported making $45,606 to straight women’s $51,461, a difference of nearly 13 percent, according to Prudential’s 2016-2017 LGBT Financial Experience Research Report, while gay men reported making an average of $56,936 to heterosexual men earning $83,469, a difference of 46 percent. 

Rebuilding, one performance at a time

But it’s not all bad news. While Covid-19 ravaged all corners of the U.S., many are LGBTQ+ people are starting to see their personal, professional, and financial lives bounce back. And with the economy opening back up and employers offering incentives and more lucrative salaries, there are many new opportunities out there. 

More than a year after his performances were canceled, Sheppard started booking gigs again — a slow trickle at first, gradually picking up steam. 

“I’m still digging myself out of the credit card debt,” he said, “and am trying above all to not dig into my investment portfolio or use the last bit of my savings.”

Rae says many of his clients are also starting to see some income growth, including gay business owners who are coming back stronger than ever after readjusting their business models to fit the new reality.

“After the initial shock of lockdown, many have pivoted and are seeing their businesses bounce back to new heights,” he says. “I have also seen many of my clients who were laid off early in the pandemic find new jobs with better salaries, benefits, and work-life balance.”

The post Why LGBTQ+ Americans Have Been Hit Harder by the Pandemic appeared first on Stash Learn.

To help us understand some of these challenges, Stash spoke with TJ Chernick, the executive director for National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce’s (NGLCC) New York chapter. The organization, founded in 2002, is the only one that certifies queer-owned businesses to qualify for supply chain contracts with large corporations. Many of these contracts are set aside to support diverse businesses, which can in turn help these smaller companies thrive and grow. 

In our discussion, Chernick talked about how people can support the LGBTQ+ community by working with queer-owned businesses, as well as investing in businesses that help to advance the queer community through progressive polices.  We also spoke with Chernick more generally about the biggest financial hurdles the LGBTQ+ community still faces. 

Following is an edited version of the conversation. 

What is NGLCC’s mission, why is it important for the LGBTQ+ community, and how did you get involved?

We are the only organization in the U.S that certifies businesses as LGBTQ+. In the same way you can be a woman-owned business, a veteran-owned business, a minority-owned business, or a disabled-owned business, we work to make sure that queer-owned businesses get the same access to opportunities that they do.

There are an estimated 1.4 million LGBTQ+ business owners in the U.S., and they contribute approximately $1.7 trillion to the U.S. economy, according to our internal research.  So imagine the impact if all LGBTQ+ business owners stood together and were counted.

There is this common misperception that LGBTQ+-owned businesses are the cliche hair stylists and wedding planners. There are definitely those, but there are also construction companies, jet engine engineers, chemical engineers, and all kinds of other cool things. 

The accreditation is not counted federally yet, as with partner organizations like the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) and National Minority Supplier Diversity Council (NMSDC). Our mission is to ensure every city, state, and corporation takes advantage of the amazing LGBTQ+ companies out there.

My background is in international human rights, and when I started working with LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs, I found it incredibly inspirational, helping them share their stories and working to elevate them. To create your own world in a world that is not built for you takes something special. When you put these entrepreneurs in a room, and create a space for them to elevate each other, there is nothing like it.

How can people support LGBTQ+ businesses, or businesses that support the LGBTQ+ community? 

The first thing to know is that the money you spend is a vote, and every dollar you spend is a ballot. You should spend accordingly, and do your research accordingly. You can find LGBTQ+- owned or supported businesses through any NGLCC affiliate or chamber around the country. Also look at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Corporate Equality Index, which measures whether a publicly-traded corporation is being inclusive both internally and externally. It is not just about being outward facing in advertising. It is also important to be inwardly facing to support the talent a company has, as well as ensuring the company’s supply chains are inclusive of LGBTQ+ businesses. 

People need to put their money where their mouth is, and that is a really great way to make the determination. 

How can people invest in public companies that have forward-thinking policies about LGBTQ+ people and workers? 

It’s important to think about whether a company has diverse leadership.There is the common adage that a company can only be as diverse as its leadership. There are many companies that work with organizations like NMSDC and Out Leadership that ensure diverse talent.  Out Leadership’s mission is to elevate LGBTQ+ talent in general, but also within publicly traded companies. And they do direct work with Fortune 500 companies. 

What can companies do to foster LGBTQ+ inclusion and create non-discrmination policies, as well as more equitable benefits, and better internal and public commitment to LGBTQ+ equality? 

One way is to hire an LGBTQ+-owned-and-operated consultancy that does this work. It’s hard to create effective policies that support marginalized communities if companies don’t consult the communities themselves. This can be especially true for Trans individuals, as well as Black, Indigneous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. If you aren’t getting direct insight from them about the things you want to implement, you won’t be that effective.

There are numerous consultants and companies that can do trans and gender nonconforming talent retention in the workforce. They can do BIPOC sensitivity and LGBTQ+ benefit consulting to make sure HR policies and benefits are inclusive. All of these things are accessible.

What are the biggest challenges for LGBTQ+ people with regard to work and creating businesses?

When it comes to LGBTQ+ people creating businesses, there are 35 states in which a bank manager can say, “We don’t loan money to your kind”—LGBTQ entrepreneurs. That is still really limiting, and we still have a journey ahead of us.

In the workplace, the upward mobility of LGBTQ+ people is an issue. If a person does not see a road upward, that is really damaging to that employee. That is something for companies to consider. LGBTQ+ leadership is important, but also being able to see yourself in a company, and being able to move upwards. If an LGBTQ+ person can’t bring their full self to work comfortably, then the company is not getting their full investment (in that employee), which is a bad business move frankly.

There’s a stereotype of LGBTQ+ having more discretionary income, can you weigh in on that? 

This is a myth. We are talking about the entirety of the LGBTQ+ community, and each part faces unique challenges. We still have so much to do to help the Trans part of our community, and the BIPOC and AAPI parts, all of which face their own particular difficulties. Women are historically paid less, and lesbians of color even less. And if you are Trans, trying to get a job itself will come with its own challenges. Our community is so intersectional, and each intersection faces its own struggle.

What are the biggest challenges for the LGBTQ+ community regarding saving and investing? 

For so long, queer people did not have access to full marrriage, and there is a history of having to plan around the system to protect one another. That is everything from wills to trusts and estates, and having to consider all the different loopholes to make sure your partner is safe without that one thing—marriage. When it comes to investing and planning, we have a history of working the system to protect the ones we love.It is exciting that younger generations, such as Gen Z, have access to so much information and knowledge and resources about investing. I didn’t know much about it until I was in high school and listened to Suze Orman. That was the first time I thought I needed to start investing. Gen Z’s ability to talk about money and finance differently is so powerful—whether that is salary or investing, it helps spread the word that things are possible, and by investing early you are starting to take good care of your future self.

The post How to Support the LGBTQ+ Community and Its Businesses appeared first on Stash Learn.

Also, make sure to tune into episodes from the Teach Me How to Money podcast, Stash’s personal finance podcast, about money issues in the LGBTQ+ community.

And check back with us as we add more content to this page throughout the month of June, and beyond.

The post Finding Financial Well-Being in the LGBTQ+ Community appeared first on Stash Learn.