One in four LGBT+ workers hide orientation to avoid discrimination, poll finds

This was one of the findings of a recent YouGov survey commissioned by social media platform LinkedIn, which unveiled widespread abuse of LGBT+ individuals in the workplace and a 16% pay gap compared with their straight colleagues.

Of those who felt unsafe to be open about their orientation, 28% said they were afraid of judgement from their peers and 14% worried they would be overlooked for promotion.

These concerns unfortunately seem to be backed up by the facts, as the majority of respondents reported that they had been made to feel uncomfortable in the workplace, over a third had witnessed homophobia at work, and 21% had been verbally abused.

LGBT+ workers also lost out financially, taking home an average of £6,703 less per year than their straight colleagues.

Most respondents said they did not see evidence of LGBT+ workers reaching the higher echelons of their company’s workforce, with 70% saying there were no senior LGBT+ staff where they work, rising to 80% and 82% in the construction and manufacturing industries.

Called for further action to protect LGBT+ workers from discrimination and harassment, 68% of the 4,000 people polled advocated for a more supportive workplace, 60% were in favour of more transparency around employers’ equality policies, and 48% wanted to hear from more leaders about coming out at work.