India Launches First LGBT Workplace Equality Index
India has launched it’s first workplace equality index for the LGBT+ community, and gives the world a glimpse of the progress the country has made and how far the country is moving forward when it comes to LGBT+ rights.
India’s groundbreaking equality index is a promising prospect of wider recognition of the LGBT+ community in more formal and professional environments. The index is India’s first regulation for employers to measure LGBT+ inclusion and visibility in the workplace.
The new index, as ‘Gay Times’ report, which is a comprehensive benchmarking tool for employers to measure their progress on LGBT+ inclusion in the workplace measures nine areas: policies and benefits, employee lifecycle, employee network group, allies and role models, senior leadership, monitoring, procurement, community engagement and additional work.
Over 65 organisations registered for India’s workplace equality index with over 15 organisations qualifying for gold, silver, and bronze recognition. However, 13 did not qualify for the minimum threshold of LGBT+ inclusivity.
This new equality index legislation has arrived two years after the Indian Supreme Court’s historic decision to repeal Section 377 in 2018, which made criminalised sexual consensual acts between adults. Since then, India has seen a huge step forward towards LGBT+ political recognition.
Earlier this year, a petition for marriage equality was issued in India which gained traction after being backed by the Delhi High Court which brought three pleas concerning marriage equality to the centre. Currently, the Hindu Marriage Act, the Special Marriage Act, and the Foreign Marriage Act doesn’t recognise same-sex marriage.
Defence Analyst Abhijit is one of the individuals from the three presented cases and also created the latest petition for marriage equality in India.
The plea states: “The non-recognition of the rights of gay couples, especially when their sexuality has been recognised as such as valid by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India is violative of various provisions of the Constitution of India as well as various provisions of the Constitution of India as well as various conventions that India as a sovereign state is a signatory to.”
Another overdue progressive step in LGBT+ rights was the integration of trans individuals into government framework. Assam became the first Indian state to allow trans people to register for the civil service exam.
The northeastern Indian state has become the first to add “transgender” as an identity category for individuals seeking civil service jobs. This progressive change will allow up to 42 candidates to take the entry exam to apply for state governmental roles.
India has seen a rise in the inclusion of trans people this year. In April, all ministries and departments were instructed by the federal government to modify recruitments forms to integrate ‘transgender’ as a separately recognised category. This change was made to adhere to India’s trans rights law which was passed last year.
The newly introduced law enables trans individuals to “have a right to self-perceived gender identity” and will ensure the “appropriate Government shall take steps to secure full and effective participation of transgender persons and their inclusion in society.”
Read related myGwork articles here:
Fight For Marriage Equality In India Takes A Huge Step Forward
Indian State Takes Major Step Forward In Recognising Trans Rights
First School For Trans People To Open In India
LGBT+ People In India Protest Anti-Trans Law
A Brief History of LGBT+ India
Keep up to date with the latest myGnews
