Page 208 - Discrimination at Work The Psychological and Organizational Bases

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Understanding Heterosexism

at Work: The Straight Problem

Belle Rose Ragins
University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

Carolyn Wiethoff
Indiana University, Bloomington

Gay and lesbian employees constitute between 4% and 17% of the U.S.
workforce (Gonsiorek & Weinrich, 1991), a larger proportion than many
other minority groups. However, unlike racism and sexism in organiza­
tions, relatively little attention has been paid to heterosexism, or the anti-
gay attitudes, prejudice, and discrimination encountered by gay men and
lesbians in the workplace (Sears, 1997). Gay and lesbian employees face
unique challenges that have no real parallel in other minority groups
(Ragins, 2004; Ragins, Cornwell, & Miller, 2003). Most notably, discrim­
ination against gay and lesbian employees, or even those who appear to be
gay or lesbian, is legal in most workplaces in the United States (Herrschaft
& Mills, 2002). Between 25% and 66% of gay and lesbian employees experi­
ence workplace discrimination, including losing their jobs because of their
sexual orientation (see review by Croteau, 1996). This represents a con­
servative estimate because most gay and lesbian employees do not fully
reveal their sexual identity at work (Badgett, 1996; Ragins & Cornwell,
2001 a). Moreover, unlike race and gender, sexual orientation is gener­
ally invisible. This complicates the study of both heterosexism and the

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