Last night the Norfolk City Council passed two ordinances which add additional protections and prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity both from the City and from the City’s contractors and subcontractors. The vote was a unanimous 8-0.
City Councilwoman Andria McClellan said, “I’m proud of the actions our Norfolk City Council took to further protect the LGBTQ members of our city.”
View the vote below at 31:50.
One ordinance requires that any city contract exceeding $1,000 include protections for sexual orientation and gender identity among other. The second ordinance codifies the same protections in city hiring.
In 2016, the City of Norfolk ranked poorly the Human Right’s Commission’s annual Municipal Equality Index, an assessment of major American city policies that protect LGBTQ people from discrimination and violence.
Out of a best possible score of 100, Norfolk ranked 49 primarily due to the lack of municipal non-discrimination laws in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The lack of a City Human Rights Commission, an LGBTQ Liasion in the Mayor’s Office, and anti-bullying school policies lowered scores as well.
In the same study, Virginia Beach ranks 47, Chesapeake scored 20, Hampton scored 19 and Newport News 18.
