Two professors are trying to introduce a benefits package for domestic partners employed by the University, despite the fact the state of Louisiana offers no statewide anti-discrimination policy on sexual orientation.
Marybeth Lima, an associate professor in biological and agricultural engineering, and William Pinar, an education professor, are working on a resolution to include domestic partner benefits as part of the University’s anti-discrimination policy. The LSU Board of Supervisors eventually would vote on the resolution.
“Anti-discrimination is abbreviated unless you include domestic partner benefits,” Pinar said.
As a public institution, the University offers a non-discrimination policy “without regard to race, creed, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, marital status or veteran’s status,” according to the Human Resources Management Web site.
As a result, the University cannot fire employees solely because they are gay, lesbian or bisexual.
The University cannot extend this policy to grant benefits to unmarried couples, said Gena Doucet, human resource manager in the compensation and benefits service center within HRM.
“It has to be looked at as a legal marriage within the state of Louisiana,” Doucet said. “We have to abide by the eligibility that the state sets.”
The nondiscrimination clause was created to let people know the University treats everyone with dignity and respect, said Assistant Vice Chancellor Mary Baszile.
“But fair and equal treatment is different from benefits,” Baszile said.
Lima said more than 175 universities offer domestic partner benefits, including schools with religious affiliations such as Baylor University and Southern Methodist University. Twenty-five percent of Fortune 500 companies offer domestic partner benefits, Lima said.
Chris Daigle, spokesman for the Louisiana Lesbian and Gay Political Action Caucus, said public institutions such as LSU and the University of New Orleans face a different situation than private institutions such as Tulane, which already offers domestic partner benefits.
Louisiana politics have been unable to get out of the shadow of their own discrimination, however. In 2001, the Louisiana Legislature defeated by a vote of 21 to 14 Sen. Donald Cravin’s, D-Lafayette, statewide anti-discrimination law that would include sexual orientation.
No federal law is in place to prevent discrimination of sexual orientation in the workplace, the American Civil Liberties Union Web site states. Louisiana is one of 38 states that has failed to pass individual legislation that would provide specifically for sexual orientation.
Joe Cook, ACLU executive director in Louisiana, said the bill was defeated because of the bias and prejudices of legislators. People believe their personal beliefs condemn anything other than heterosexual behavior, he said.
Baszile said until that law is changed, the University will be unable to provide benefits for domestic partners.
Janie Frickie, Human Resources Management director, said because LSU is a state agency, it is subject to laws and plans the state of Louisiana sets. Since Louisiana does not recognize same-sex marriages as legal, LSU cannot grant benefits to those couples.
“We’re not in a position to make our own decisions,” Frickie said.
Daigle disagreed, saying the University legally could grant benefits but could face political consequences. The University could face censure from the Legislature if the members of the Legislature do not agree with the benefit policy, he said.
“It’s the biggest argument a homophobe could use to cut funding,” Daigle said.
The New Orleans City Council offers domestic partner benefits to city employees, but Cook did not know if anyone had used that option.
New Orleans can decide how it wants to spend its own money, Daigle said. The cost of the benefits was absorbed by the New Orleans sales tax. Public institutions do not have that luxury, Daigle said.
Malia Guerrero, co-chair of Spectrum Alliance, said the domestic partner benefits package would apply to heterosexual couples as well as same-sex couples. Heterosexual couples who do not want to get married or do not believe in marriage would be eligible for the domestic partner benefits.
Guerrero said contrary to what most people think, the benefits do not constitute that much of an economic hardship.
Daigle said the employees are the ones paying the extra benefits, not the state. The average additional cost for universities that have implemented domestic partner benefits is about 1 to 2 percent.
“We’re not talking about a lot of money,” Daigle said.
Lima said she and Pinar are putting together a draft and a sample policy that other universities have used as their policy.
Pinar said he did not know when the proposal would be available, but he and Lima will meet with an LSU administrator later this month.