Wellington To Draft LGBT Ordinance Supporting The County’s Policy

By Ron Bukley, Town-Crier Editor
August 21, 2015

The Wellington Village Council directed its attorney last week to draft an ordinance in support of Palm Beach County’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights ordinance.

At the Aug. 11 meeting, Rand Hoch, president of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, explained his request for the council to adopt the county’s civil rights ordinance as it pertains to LGBT people, and the difficulties the village would encounter if it opted out of it.

Village Attorney Laurie Cohen had recommended opting out of the ordinance proposed by Hoch out of concern for potential liability to the village.

Hoch, whose law practice has centered on workplace issues and civil rights, asked the council to enact an ordinance informing all residents, not just village employees, about their civil rights and directing them to appropriate agencies if they seek redress.

In 2010, the Human Rights Council asked the village to include LGBT employees in its nondiscrimination policies, in compliance with the county’s equal employment opportunity ordinance, and Hoch was invited to work with the village attorney to help draft the LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination policies, which were then adopted unanimously by the Wellington Village Council.

At a workshop in July, there was discussion of whether a municipal civil rights ordinance would be of benefit to the village.

“Civil rights laws exist to specifically identify people who have been recognized as victims of discrimination, and to specifically provide such individuals with the opportunity to have their claims investigated and adjudicated upon by independent agencies,” Hoch said. “The key word is, ‘independent.’”

He pointed out that the village’s human resources director is charged with investigating civil rights violations, but the village has the final say whether discrimination has occurred. “It’s not independent,” Hoch said. “It’s sort of allowing the potential fox to guard the henhouse.”

With the current climate in the United States Congress and Florida Legislature, Hoch said it was unlikely that pro-LGBT legislation would be forthcoming at the state and federal levels. Although people who feel that they have been discriminated against can file a complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Hoch said EEOC findings are not binding in court. “The only recourse that the village’s LGBT employees have arises from the county ordinance,” he said.

Hoch said that he was upset that Cohen had recommended opting out of the county ordinance. “Those ordinances provide you and your employees the least expensive way to resolve complaints of discrimination,” he said.

Vice Mayor John Greene said he understood Cohen’s concern of liability to the village, and that he believes that the village already has an inclusive human rights policy as an employer, but would support the county ordinance.

“I think it is important, as we have seen recently from the United States Supreme Court, there are laws changing, and we really want to eliminate discrimination at any level,” Greene said. “I think this is a step in that direction, and I will support that. I hope that we can come up with language that is acceptable to everybody.”

Hoch pointed out that other municipalities, including Delray Beach and Boynton Beach, had adopted supportive policies.

Councilman Matt Willhite said he thought it was good that other municipalities had adopted ordinances, and asked what would happen if the village did nothing, or if it modified the language of the county ordinance that Cohen was concerned with.

Hoch said he was open, as long as an ordinance included LGBT employees. “We’re not married to the language,” he said.

Councilwoman Anne Gerwig said she had numerous friends and family closely associated with LGBT concerns.




“It has nothing to do with that, I just don’t support this as a protected class, because I don’t think someone’s sexuality is something that has anything to do with the workplace,” she said. “I don’t think someone’s sexuality is something that should be discussed in the workplace. I wouldn’t want someone to be treated poorly; I just don’t think it is a discussion that is appropriate for the working situation.”

She added that the current policy protects anyone who is being harassed for something that has nothing to do with their work.

Hoch said a friend of his had been in a job interview where he was wearing a wedding band.

“The interviewer kept asking about his wife,” he said. “He has been married to his husband for three years. It’s not sex that we’re talking about. Someone who has a picture of their family or someone who is wearing a wedding band, or someone who says, ‘What did you do this weekend?’ and you say, ‘My husband and I went fishing.’ That’s where it comes up.”

Greene made a motion, seconded by Councilman John McGovern, directing Cohen to draft language in support of the county’s LGBT ordinance and bring it back to the council by the end of the fiscal year.

The motion passed 4-1 with Gerwig dissenting.

Wellington To Draft LGBT Ordinance Supporting The County’s Policy

By Ron Bukle

Town Crier Staff Writer

 August 21, 2015

The Wellington Village Council directed its attorney last week to draft an ordinance in support of Palm Beach County’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights ordinance.


At the Aug. 11 meeting, Rand Hoch, president of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, explained his request for the council to adopt the county’s civil rights ordinance as it pertains to LGBT people, and the difficulties the village would encounter if it opted out of it.


Village Attorney Laurie Cohen had recommended opting out of the ordinance proposed by Hoch out of concern for potential liability to the village.


Hoch, whose law practice has centered on workplace issues and civil rights, asked the council to enact an ordinance informing all residents, not just village employees, about their civil rights and directing them to appropriate agencies if they seek redress.


In 2010, the Human Rights Council asked the village to include LGBT employees in its nondiscrimination policies, in compliance with the county’s equal employment opportunity ordinance, and Hoch was invited to work with the village attorney to help draft the LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination policies, which were then adopted unanimously by the Wellington Village Council.
 
At a workshop in July, there was discussion of whether a municipal civil rights ordinance would be of benefit to the village.


“Civil rights laws exist to specifically identify people who have been recognized as victims of discrimination, and to specifically provide such individuals with the opportunity to have their claims investigated and adjudicated upon by independent agencies,” Hoch said. “The key word is, ‘independent.’”

He pointed out that the village’s human resources director is charged with investigating civil rights violations, but the village has the final say whether discrimination has occurred. “It’s not independent,” Hoch said. “It’s sort of allowing the potential fox to guard the henhouse.”


With the current climate in the United States Congress and Florida Legislature, Hoch said it was unlikely that pro-LGBT legislation would be forthcoming at the state and federal levels. Although people who feel that they have been discriminated against can file a complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Hoch said EEOC findings are not binding in court. “The only recourse that the village’s LGBT employees have arises from the county ordinance,” he said.


Hoch said that he was upset that Cohen had recommended opting out of the county ordinance. “Those ordinances provide you and your employees the least expensive way to resolve complaints of discrimination,” he said.


Vice Mayor John Greene said he understood Cohen’s concern of liability to the village, and that he believes that the village already has an inclusive human rights policy as an employer, but would support the county ordinance.


“I think it is important, as we have seen recently from the United States Supreme Court, there are laws changing, and we really want to eliminate discrimination at any level,” Greene said. “I think this is a step in that direction, and I will support that. I hope that we can come up with language that is acceptable to everybody.”


Hoch pointed out that other municipalities, including Delray Beach and Boynton Beach, had adopted supportive policies.


Councilman Matt Willhite said he thought it was good that other municipalities had adopted ordinances, and asked what would happen if the village did nothing, or if it modified the language of the county ordinance that Cohen was concerned with.

Hoch said he was open, as long as an ordinance included LGBT employees. “We’re not married to the language,” he said.
 
Councilwoman Anne Gerwig said she had numerous friends and family closely associated with LGBT concerns.


“It has nothing to do with that, I just don’t support this as a protected class, because I don’t think someone’s sexuality is something that has anything to do with the workplace,” she said. “I don’t think someone’s sexuality is something that should be discussed in the workplace. I wouldn’t want someone to be treated poorly; I just don’t think it is a discussion that is appropriate for the working situation.

She added that the current policy protects anyone who is being harassed for something that has nothing to do with their work.


Hoch said a friend of his had been in a job interview where he was wearing a wedding band.
“The interviewer kept asking about his wife,” he said. “He has been married to his husband for three years. It’s not sex that we’re talking about. Someone who has a picture of their family or someone who is wearing a wedding band, or someone who says, ‘What did you do this weekend?’ and you say, ‘My husband and I went fishing.’ That’s where it comes up.”


Greene made a motion, seconded by Councilman John McGovern, directing Cohen to draft language in support of the county’s LGBT ordinance and bring it back to the council by the end of the fiscal year.
 
The motion passed 4-1 with Gerwig dissenting.

Activist marks 27 years of fight for equality

http://mpb.floridaweekly.com/news/2015-08-20/Top_News/Activist_marks_27_years_of_fight_for_equality.html#.Vdi8E5dpYZw

Activist marks 27 years of fight for equality

BY CAROLYN SUSMAN

Florida Weekly correspondent
Week of August 20-25, 2015

The long-awaited U.S. Supreme Court action in June overturning bans on gay marriage liberated many to openly proclaim their joy and celebrate.

But some of those same celebrants had found coming out as gay to be a long and painful process.

They also may have found that once you were out, you could hit a wall of discrimination that was hard and hurtful.

Palm Beach County lawyer Rand Hoch has fought diligently over the years to bring along thousands of his gay brothers and sisters through his battle for gay rights and his openness and activism.

***

"When I started law school in the early 1980s, I toned things down a bit. I was still dating men, going to the clubs and the beach, but wasn't overly out at law school. At the time Stetson was still a Baptist school, so I didn't want to cause any problems."

And there was still fear and doubt that gays could be openly accepted practicing law.

"During my second year of school, a budget analyst for Broward County, Todd Shuttleworth, was fired for having AIDS. When he lost his job, he also lost his health insurance. I sent a letter to Alan Terl, an ACLU participating attorney who was representing Todd, offering my assistance.

"Alan called to thank me and advised me not to get involved. He feared that my association with the case could jeopardize my admission to The Florida Bar. At the time, the Florida Supreme Court had ruled that one's sexual orientation alone could not be used to deny admission to The Florida Bar. But the Court did not rule on whether a 'practicing homosexual' could be admitted. And I had been practicing for quite some time."

But practicing and being openly accepted are two different things, especially concerning employment. Mr. Hoch found this out while working as a clerk for a law firm in North Palm Beach years ago

He had assumed the firm tacitly acknowledged his sexual orientation when members gave him two weeks to go to San Francisco and attend the Democratic National Convention.

"Now, most people know that political conventions last a few days, not two weeks," he notes. "So when the firm said that would be fine, I thought that maybe this was the firm's way of saying, 'It's OK to be gay and work for us.' "

He was very wrong.

He was offered a job with the firm after graduation; that was the good news.

But when he decided he didn't want to "actively hide" his personal life, he asked how his homosexuality would affect eventually becoming a partner.

That brought the bad news.

"I watched the color drain from his face, and then I watched the color return as he said, 'We've never had that problem before.' This was not a good sign.

"He asked how my being gay might have an impact on the firm.

"I replied that I didn't intend on asking male clients to dance at the Christmas party, but, if there was going to be a firm party or retreat, I would like to be able to bring along my significant other, if I had one. As it turns out, one of the firm's biggest clients would probably have enjoyed dancing with me. But at the time, I didn't know he was gay."

Eventually, Mr. Hoch negotiated a graceful exit that allowed him to say he had turned down their job offer when questioned about why he left.

This was a big turning point in his career.

"Having been a victim of discrimination based solely on my sexual orientation, I refocused my legal studies to labor law," he said.

"After graduation, I went to work for a labor law firm in West Palm Beach, representing workers and unions. Based on what had happened with the other law firm, I decided not to volunteer information about my sexuality, but I decided that I would be truthful if asked. They didn't ask."

He went on to become a founder in 1988 of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council. He has twice served as the organization's president and has helped to spearhead efforts that have greatly expanded gay rights, particularly in Palm Beach County.

"Over the past 27 years, PBCHRC has been the impetus for enacting close to 100 LGBT-inclusive laws and policies," Mr. Hoch says.

"Personally, I am most proud of orchestrating the successful campaign in 1989 and 1990 to have the County Commission amend the County's Fair Housing Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and marital status.

"Until that was done, a gay rights law had only been enacted one time in Florida, in Dade County, and it was repealed within a matter of months. So, our law remains the oldest LGBT rights law in effect in Florida today."

What he doesn't mention in his biography and public statements is his effort to see that there is strong leadership trained to carry on this battle.

"After having the honor to have been mentored by Rand Hoch I can honestly say he believes in supporting the next generation to continue the work above all else," says Carly Elizabeth Cass, a council board member.

"Since I joined the board of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council last year, he has repeatedly expressed the belief that 'a good leader is always looking for his or her replacement,'" she says.

"Rand does not let his ego get in the way of the work. He has expressed and shown the importance of asking for help, and always giving credit where credit is due. Out of everything he has taught me, perhaps the most important is that there is a process as to how things should be done and it must be respected.

"Rand is not the type of person to jump the gun, rather he is one of the most diplomatic leaders I have ever met.

"He will exhaust all resources before taking controversial action. With all that being said, Rand has a lot more on his to-do list before stepping down from his position within the community."

To read the complete article, click here.

 

PBCHRC Launches "Palm Beach County: You're Welcome!" Campaign Celebration

The Palm Beach County Human Rights Council formally launched our "Palm Beach County: You're Welcome" campaign in Palm Beach last Wednesday night.

Dozens of  PBCHRC supporters - including Palm Beach County Mayor Shelley Vana, West Palm Beach Mayor Jeri Muoio and Palm Beach County's Constitutional Tax Collector Anne Gannon - attended  the celebration at Meat Market Palm Beach.  The event was produced  by Altima Palm Beach, a local public relations firm that donated its services to PBCHRC.

The campaign serves to encourage local municipalities to enact LGBT-inclusive civil rights laws to not only educate local residents and business owners of their civil rights and responsibilities, but also to help attract more jobs, revenue and resources to Palm Beach County.

In making relocation and expansion decisions, more and more businesses are investigating how municipalities protect their LGBT residents

Last month, Facebook announced a $1 billion investment in a data center in Fort Worth, Texas.  The project is expected to generate $21 million in taxes for the city over the next 10 years.  Before committing to Fort Worth, Facebook reviewed the civil rights ordinances of all of the potential locations for the data center specifically to see if there were LGBT-inclusive civil rights ordinances.  Fort Worth's  civil rights ordinance had been on the books for 15 years.

At the start of this year, West Palm Beach, Lake Worth and Palm Beach County were the only local governments with LGBT-inclusive civil rights laws.  Thanks to PBCHRC's efforts, additional civil rights ordinances have since been enacted this year in Boynton Beach, Greenacres and Delray Beach.

Last Tuesday evening, the Wellington Village Council also voted to direct the Village Attorney to draft an LGBT-inclusive civil rights ordinance prior to the end of the Village's fiscal year in October.  Four of the five Council Members spoke out in favor of the ordinance.

In Haverhill, the Town Council recently held a workshop on a similar civil rights ordinance.  Council Member Lawrence Gordon is working with the Town Attorney on the specific language, and the ordinance is expected to come before the Town Council in late August.

Lake Clarke Shores Vice Mayor Gregory Freebold, who attended the celebration in Palm Beach, has taken the lead in having his town enact a LGBT-inclusive civil rights.   Freebold is working closely with PBCHRC Board Member Hutch Floyd, a town resident.  The Town Council is expected to vote on the ordinance within the next several weeks.

Working together with elected officials, PBCHRC has changed the face of Palm Beach County for the better.  However, while marriage equality is now the law of the land in all 50 states, there is no federal or state law that protects LGBT Floridians from discrimination.

"Thanks to the local civil rights laws and policies we have enacted, Palm Beach County is one of the best places in the world for LGBT people to live, study, work, raise families and retire," Palm Beach County Mayor Shelley Vana told PBCHRC supporters.

PBCHRC  will continue our work locally so that we can help secure equal rights and benefits for LGBT people.

SAVE THE DATE 

There will be a PBCHRC Happy Hour for supporters on the evening of Tuesday, September 22nd at Wine Scene, 501 Fern Street in West Palm Beach.  Details will be sent soon.