For
Immediate Release

13^th October 2011

A seminar
entitled “Valuing LGBT Staff Good for Employers, Equality & the Economy”
will be held on Monday 17th October at 10.30a.m. in the Millennium Hall, City Hall, Cork.

It is
being organised by the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Interagency Steering Group, on
behalf of the Cork City Development Board, and is the first of its kind to be
held in Ireland. It will be opened by Ms. Kathleen
Lynch T.D. Minister of State, for Disability, Older People, Equality &
Mental Health,

The target audience is management level staff, and
will be of special interest to HR Managers, Equality Officers and those
managing staff in both the private & public sectors. The aim of the event
is to make employers more aware of the value of their LGBT staff and work to
ensure that LGBT policies are developed within their organisations.

“Good employers understand the business case for equality and
diversity. Equality in the workplace is also a key priority for lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender people (LGBT). There has been enormous progress for
lesbian and gay people in Ireland over the last 20 years. The recent
introduction of Civil Partnership continues this progress in bringing equality
in the workplace in the area of pensions and workplace benefits for same sex
couples.  It gives employers and those concerned with LGBT workplace
diversity an excellent opportunity to raise awareness of the issues and build
best practice.”  Davin Roche,
Director of Workplace Diversity, GLEN (Gay & Lesbian Equality Network)

ICTU Equality Officer, David Joyce, who will also
be speaking on the day, said “that
greater workplace equality could aid our economic recovery and help ensure that
we create a more sustainable growth model in the years to come. Those societies
that prioritise equality across all spheres of social and economic life are
more stable, less prone to crisis and more economically efficient.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people still face discrimination
in Irish workplaces today and the trade union movement is committed to ensure
that all our members rights to decent work are respected”

Con O’Donnell, Cork City Council, chairman of the organising committee
welcomed the event as a show case of good practice from private and public
sector employers and stated “the interagency focus on LGB issues in Cork City is
one that could be repeated throughout the country”.  He also welcomed the contribution from
Sergeant Paul Franey of G-Force the
Garda Gay Lesbian and Bisexual employee resource group.

Speakers include Valeria Mannu from
EMC² (a multinational in Cork), Davin Roche from GLEN (Gay and
Lesbian Equality Network), David Joyce of ICTU, Chief Superintendent Michael
Finn of An Garda Síochána and Sergeant Paul Franey of G-Force the Garda Gay and
Lesbian Resource group.

For further
information contact:

Con O’Donnell,
Chairman Cork City Interagency Steering Group 0879372164 ENDS

The judgment concerns a case brought by retired German municipal employee, Jürgen Römer, who is in a civil union, after his former employer the City of Hamburg refused to recalculate his pension benefits under the tax scheme applicable to married couples.

The ruling could set a precedent for couples with to similar claims in other EU countries.

Judges said individuals could claim against a local authority for the right to equal treatment under EU law, even if national law contained no provision relevant to their case.

At an annual conference this week, education authorities and gay advocates have announced plans for a new resource pubclication to help teachers support their LGB students who are undergoing issues related to their sexuality.

The Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI), the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI), and the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN) created the document by building on previous teachers unions’ resources, as well as the Department of Education Guidelines for Principals that was issued to schools last year regarding the issue of homophobic bullying.

A press release issued by GLEN highlighted the four steps teachers should take in helping their gay students. Teachers should “recognise the diversity of students that they teach, including recognising that some of their students are lesbian, gay or bisexual; to affirm the value of this diversity; to support students who identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual and to challenge name-calling and homophobic bullying in an effective way.”

Sandra Gowran, the GLEN Education Policy Director addressed the need for the new resource. “We know from the Department of Education’s research (Norman et al) that four out of five teachers are aware of homophobic name-calling in their schools, while 90% of schools do not make any specific reference to homophobic bullying in their Anti-Bullying policies.”

She continued on to praise the work by the educational community by stating, “The TUI and the ASTI are demonstrating strong commitment to addressing this problem by providing the necessary leadership to their members, very many of whom are dealing with this issue on a day-to-day basis in their work.”

All those involved hope that this will be the first step in a continuous effort by teachers to end anti-gay bullying in their classrooms.

Yesterday, BeLonG To Youth Services launched its annual campaign, Stand Up! which runs from April 4-15. The campaign, which was launched by Dominic Hannigan TD, aims to raise awareness of homophobic bullying in Ireland today.

As part of the campaign, more than 1,600 secondary schools and youth organisations throughout Ireland have been issued Stand Up! packs containing information on the subject for teachers and youth workers.

The campaign is supported by several Irish celebrities, including the cast of RTÉ series RAW and Pure Mule, RTÉ presenter Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh, comedian Katherine Lynch and model Vogue Williams.

Commenting on the campaign, Michael Barron, chief executive of BeLonG To, said: “On foot of the commitment in the Programme for Government to combat homophobic bullying, we call on the Government to work with us to develop a national action plan to address this huge problem in a concerted way.

“Over the next two weeks young people all over the country will stand up against homophobic bullying and will show their support for their gay friends. This is a fantastic and powerful action from young people. When this is combined with real action at a government level we should see major inroads being made in ending this harassment. In 2011 we should not allow any young person to be harassed for who they are.”

Research supported by the HSE’s National Office for Suicide Prevention has found that almost three in five (58%) LGBT young people are bullied at school, with one in five skipping school due to fear of harassment.

The study also found that half of LGBT people under the age of 25 have seriously thought of ending their lives, 20% have attempted suicide and 27% self-harmed at least once.

Dominic Hannigan said: “Over the years, BeLonG To has played a leading role in opening our eyes to homophobic bullying. I feel especially proud to be part of this event because our Programme for Government includes homophobic bullying as a priority issue in schools.”

Stand Up! is aimed at creating positive understanding of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people and their issues.

Show your support for the campaign and add a Twibbon to your Facebook or Twitter profile:

Why do we need Stand Up week?

Many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people develop their sexual and gender identities within supportive families and communities and are leading happy lives. However, many other LGBT young people experience serious levels of homophobia, transphobia and exclusion in their schools, youth clubs and local areas.

Stand Up! Week will provide an annual focus for promoting positive awareness of LGBT young people, tackling homophobia and homophobic bullying, and building allies among young people and youth workers.
Stand Up Week, 2011

This years’ Stand Up! Week will be held 4 – 15 April 2011, and will take place schools and youth services around Ireland.

During Stand Up! Week youth workers and teachers will offer all young people who participate in their centre/school the opportunity to participate in fun and educational activities. These will increase awareness, build supportive links among young people and reduce the incidence of bullying and name-calling.

The Educational Pack for Stand Up! Week will include a poster, DVD and activities for each youth centre and school and stickers for young people. Other fun events will be organized to publicise Stand Up! Week and encourage young people to participate.

“Exclusion is not an Irish thing.”

Gilmore says the parade is at odds with “Irishness” because the 250-year-old parade continues to exclude the LGBT community.

“What these parades are about is a celebration of Ireland and Irishness. I think they need to celebrate Ireland as it is, not as people imagine it. Equality is very much the centre of who we are in our identity in Ireland.”

“This issue of exclusion is not Irish, let’s be clear about it. Exclusion is not an Irish thing. … I think that’s the message that needs to be driven home.”

In September, President Mary McAleese refused an invitation to be the grand marshal of this year’s parade for this anti-gay stance. As an alternative, the gay Irish community started the ‘St Pats For All’ parade in Queens, NY in 2000, meant to be “open and welcoming to all who wish [to] share the spirit of the day.”