Giving Compass' Take:

• George B. Cunningham, at Yes!, describes the all-encompassing benefits of the new LGBTQ workers' rights law, which bans discrimination against LGBTQ workplace members.

• How does an environment of inclusion foster increased productivity? What are you doing in your organization to disallow all forms of discrimination and injustice? How can you promote the acceptance of the LGBTQ workers' rights law in other movements for civil rights?

• Learn more about LGBTQ rights beyond the borders of the United States.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 15 that an employer who fires an individual for being gay or transgender violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In other words, discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals is now forbidden under federal law.

As someone who supports LGBT rights, I believe it’s a big step forward, and one that I hope compels companies that continue to discriminate to change their ways.

But, as my research and that of others shows, there was already a powerful reason to do so: Workplaces that are more inclusive tend to perform better than those that aren’t.

In a 2019 study, a colleague and I examined LGBT inclusion at 65 of the biggest university athletic departments in the U.S. and compared it with how well their teams performed in the gym or on the field.

We found that as LGBT inclusiveness increased, so too did the overall success of the school’s teams.

The benefits were especially positive when the state in which the university was located had a high number of sexual minority residents and low levels of bias toward LGBT individuals.

Equally important was what we did not find. Specifically, LGBT inclusion did not hurt performance when the state didn’t have a large gay population or when bias was high. Put another way, there were only positives—and no negatives—associated with having an inclusive workplace.

Researchers in human resource management, business ethics, and organizational psychology have all come to similar conclusions.

For example, in a study of thousands of companies, researchers found that LGBT inclusion also correlates with employee productivity, profitability, and business performance.

So although the Supreme Court has finally and firmly banned LBGT discrimination, companies that have already embraced more inclusive workplaces have long been reaping the benefits.

Read the full article about the new LGBTQ workers' rights law by George B. Cunningham at YES! Magazine.