myGwork stories #6 UAE - 'Working in a locked closet'

Having worked for a ‘diversity ‘champion’ throughout most of my career, I believe I was lucky enough to have a great experience at my last job. Living in the UAE is not very easy for an LGBT professional, however; I was lucky enough to be able to come out to my colleagues and to some of the senior management.

Since it is a highly sensitive topic, I cannot be ‘openly’ gay in my current workplace because of the conditions in the country I live in. Therefore, even though I am quite happy with my job, designation, and the people I work with; I asked for a permanent transfer to my company’s London office.

My work quality increased considerably when I decided to come out in my work environment. It is quite hard for an LGBT professional to listen to colleagues’ personal lives or stories about what had happened during weekends and not being able to collaborate or contribute to the conversation. This leads to stress and demotivation eventually as you feel you are forced to behave as someone you are not while at work. However; I am lucky enough to be working for a boss who was insightful enough to tell me that I would have 35 years at work to come and that I should not be acting as someone I am not. When he first told me that, I did not understand the impact of this conversation; however, I am experiencing it everyday/learning it everyday now that I am out in my company.

Even though my salary has always been good and I am described as an efficient/hardworking employee who has a good future prospect in my current office, being able to be yourself is definitely the most important aspect at workplace. Even though, my global employer supports equal rights for LGBT employees, the political and social norms in the region I live in simply do not allow me or my company to make official statements regarding equal rights for LGBT members. It is for this reason that I have decided to continue my life in the UK and I find it quite interesting that this minor change can make such a huge difference in an individual’s life. I have already been working with the London team and I will be working with the Dubai team when I finish my relocation process, however; being in the UK definitely will make a difference officially when it comes to communication and I am truly looking forward to that.

As a 30 year-old employee who has lived in 5 different countries on 2 different continents, I am well aware of the difficulties an LGBT professional can face regardless of location, however; I have also learned through my experiences that it is our communication style and networking methods that allow us to be ourselves in our personal and professional life. And for this, the country that we live in, the society that we belong to, and the company we work for plays a major role.

The author of this article needs to remain anonymous as he still lives in the United Arab Emirates where being gay is illegal.

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This article is part of myGwork Stories: a series of articles about being LGBT in the workplace in different countries, cultures and industries.