Editorial Voice: Nondiscrimination policy opinions, concerns sought

If you receive regular emails from Springfield Business Journal, you should have in your inbox an invitation to fill out a survey regarding nondiscrimination policies in your workplaces.

As our organization and other media outlets have reported, a city task force has been meeting since late last year to review the nondiscrimination policy for inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes. Springfield City Council established the task force after an infamous summer council meeting with 500 in attendance and some comments going viral on the Web.

SBJ, 417 Magazine, the Missouri Association of Manufacturers and the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce are partnering to collect information from small-business owners to take their temperature on the controversial matter. The nondiscrimination policy covers employment, housing and public accommodations in the city.

In the early results of the eight-question survey, 51 percent of respondents indicate their companies have written nondiscrimination policies in place, and 70 percent of those policies do not include the terms “sexual orientation” and/or “gender identity.” Exactly half of those surveyed said they would support the city adding “sexual orientation” and/or “gender identity” to the city’s policy, and a surprising 18.5 percent stated they didn’t have an opinion on the hotly debated issue.

Survey results will be collected through April 5. The task force is charged with submitting its report and recommendation to council by June 30.

If you receive a survey, please take the time to represent your company’s opinions and concerns. From our perspective, the more informed the decision makers, the better representation the end result is for our community and businesses.

—Eric Olson, Editor, Springfield Business Journal[[In-content Ad]]