{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.merkley.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=b275db17-2b4f-4c5c-bb12-febf717248d1", "Bipartisan Group of Senators: It’s Time to Pass ENDA", "2013-11-04", "2013", "2013-11", "Democrat", "House", "OR", "Jeff Merkley", "M001176", "www.merkley.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Bipartisan Group of Senators: It\u2019s Time to Pass ENDA \n\t\n\t\t Landmark Gay Rights Bill Will End LGBT Employment Discrimination \n\t\n\t\n\tMonday, November 4, 2013\n\t\n\tWashington, DC \u2013 Today, after the successful cloture vote to start debate on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Tom Harkin (D-IA), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) called on the Senate to pass the bill and end LGBT employment discrimination. They said it was time for this bipartisan civil rights bill to move forward.\r\n\u201cEveryone, gay or straight, should have the right to work hard and earn a living,\u201d Merkley said. \u201cUnfortunately, in 29 states you can still be fired for who you are and who you love. That is just plain wrong. This week, the Senate has an opportunity to right this wrong and stand for fairness and equality for all Americans. I urge my colleagues to put in place these commonsense protections for our LGBT friends and families.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\"The Employment Non-Discrimination Act is about civil rights. In Illinois, we aspire to continue Abraham Lincoln\u2019s legacy of fighting for liberty and human dignity,\" Senator Kirk said. \"I measure myself against Senator Everett Dirksen, the Illinois fiscal conservative and social moderate whose passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 stood out as one of his best moments as a Republican leader. The fact that a majority of Fortune 500 companies already have taken steps to stop discrimination in the workplace highlights that our action is overdue. I will maintain the tradition of Lincoln and Dirksen by supporting ENDA to block discrimination in the workplace and maintain our competitive edge in the global economy.\"\u00a0\r\n\u201cDespite the passage of laws at the state and local levels, discrimination in the workplace continues to be all too real,\u201d said Harkin.\u00a0 \u201cForty-two percent of lesbian gay and bisexual workers report having experienced some form of discrimination at work.\u00a0 Even with the progress that has been made at the state and local levels, too many hardworking Americans, whether employed by private companies or by public entities, are being judged not by their ability and qualifications, but by their sexual orientation or gender identity,\u201d Harkin said. \u201cLesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans deserve the same civil rights protections from discrimination as all other Americans.\u00a0 This bill will accomplish that.\u00a0 It will say to millions of LGBT Americans that they are full and welcome members of our American family, and that they deserve the same civil rights protections as all other Americans.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cAll Americans deserve a fair opportunity to pursue the American dream. Over the years, we have rightly taken a stand against workplace discrimination based on race, sex, national origin, religion, age, and disability.\u00a0 It is past time we ensure that all employees are judged on their talents, abilities, their hard work, and capabilities by closing an important gap in federal law as it relates to sexual orientation,\u201d said Senator Collins.\u00a0 \u201cI am pleased to be a long-time supporter and original cosponsor of ENDA.\u00a0 This bill deserves support as a matter of fairness and as a matter of civil rights.\u00a0 It is a commonsense solution, consistent with existing federal civil rights laws, and it will not place an undue burden on American employers.\u00a0 Moreover, it is simply the right thing to do.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\"Every American deserves the freedom to work free of discrimination,\u201d said Baldwin.\u00a0 \u201cPassing ENDA is about opportunity \u2013 about whether every American gets to dream the same dreams, chase the same ambitions, and have the same shot at success. I am proud to be a part of this bipartisan effort to build a tomorrow where America is more equal, not less.\"\u00a0\r\nThe Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013 would prohibit employers from firing, refusing to hire, or discriminating against those employed or seeking employment, on the basis of their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity.\u00a0 Such protections are already in place prohibiting discrimination based on race, religion, gender, national origin, age, and disability. \u00a0\r\nMore than 85 percent of Fortune 500 companies already extend workplace protections based on sexual orientation and more than one-third on the basis of gender identity. In July, ENDA was reported out of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in a bipartisan vote.\r\n\r\n###\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n     \n\t\n \n\t\n    \n    \n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t  \n    \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n      \n    \n    \n    \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t  \n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t  \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.merkley.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=b275db17-2b4f-4c5c-bb12-febf717248d1"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.044981112703681, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}