One of the biggest unknowns of a job search can be assessing company culture. How can you tell if a particular work environment not only suits your current work goals, but also supports your work style, values and identity?
For individuals who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer or Questioning, Intersex or Asexual (LGBTQIA+) and are also affected by cancer, finding a supportive workplace can be so important to long-term physical and mental health.
People with an employer who has expressed bias (directly or indirectly) against their sexual orientation or gender identity may feel less safe disclosing a cancer diagnosis or requesting reasonable accommodations, which may be essential for managing treatment schedules or side effects. The ongoing stress of a hostile work environment can drastically affect mental health beyond work into personal life. Feeling surrounded by discriminating or non-affirming supervisors and coworkers can be isolating and traumatic, leading to a sense of decreased job security or the need to find a safer workplace at a time when changing jobs may not be an option due to the need for financial security and access to critical healthcare and other benefits.
Thankfully, there are an increasing number of resources available to help learn more about everything from your legal rights to what it can be like to work for a particular company, whether it be through reports on company history and values or through reviews written directly by current and past employees. We’ve compiled a list below that we hope will specifically help our LGBTQIA+ community in the job search. While this list is by no means exhaustive, we hope it might help identify companies that will welcome you and provide a sense of safety in the workplace that is so critical to navigating work and cancer.
Glassdoor’s Diversity and Inclusion Features
- In September 2020, Glassdoor launched a variety of new diversity and inclusion features across their website. We frequently recommend Glassdoor as an incredibly helpful part of the job search process, allowing you to read reviews directly from employees. Now, with these features, you can find reviews that speak specifically to gender identity and sexual orientation.
- Start Out is an organization dedicated to empowering LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs by hosting networking events, webinars, facilitating connections with mentors, investors and more.
Onward Search’s Resources for LGBTQIA+ Creative, Marketing and Technology Professionals
- Onward Search is a staffing and recruiting company focused on finding jobs for creative professionals. In this comprehensive list, they share resources for community support and job opportunities in creative, design, marketing, and technology fields.
Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index
- Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has surveyed 1,142 companies in 2021 and compiled this data on corporate policies, practices and benefits for LGBTQIA+ employees.
- Their Index also includes a Search by Employer feature.
- And you can download their listing of the 767 businesses they’ve rated as the Best Places to Work for Equality.
Center Link’s Jobs & Careers Board
- CenterLink was founded in 1994 to support the development of sustainable LGBTQIA+ community centers. Their Jobs & Careers Board lists remote and in-person positions at their community centers across the country.
National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) Employment Rights Overview
- NCTE envisions a society in which transgender people not only survive, but thrive. Their website discusses issues such as aging, anti-violence, identity documents & privacy, and voting rights.
- Their Federal and General Employment Rights webpages offer a thorough overview of rights in the workplace, access to health insurance, discrimination and filing complaints.
- NCTE also created the Trans Legal Services Network to “ensure that every transgender person has access to assistance navigating the complicated name and gender change process and any other legal issues they may face.” Their network includes 80 organizations across the country.