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ARTICLE · 10 OCTOBER 2016

Exploring LGBT Discrimination In The Workplace

McDermott Will & Emery
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The effects of same-sex marriage on employee benefits, companies' actions to prevent employee discrimination and an evolving focus on benefits with special implications for diverse employees continue to be hot topics in today's workplace.

United StatesEmployment and HR
Todd Solomon
Todd Solomon
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Impact of Same‐Sex Marriage on Company Benefit Plans and Employment Policies

  • After the U.S. Supreme Court's same‐sex marriage rulings in 2013 and 2015, these are some of the effects on employee benefits:
    • Employees who participate in retirement plans receive automatic survivor death benefits for their same‐sex spouses benefit.
    • Employers that choose to extend health benefit coverage to their employees' spouses generally must also provide it to same‐sex spouses.
    • Movement toward marriage: Potential rescission of domestic partner benefits since same‐sex marriage is now legal in the United States.
      • Verizon, Delta Air Lines, IBM, Corning were among large employers that had rescinded domestic partner benefits to employees and began providing spousal coverage instead.

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