LGBTQIA+ Career Planning: Should I be Out at Work?

How Out Do You Want to Be?

Coming out is a persona decision that is entirely up to you. You decide how important it is to be out and under what circumstances. For some, their sexual, gender, or queer identity is an integral part of their identity as a whole that remaining closeted in the workplace would feel like a lie. Others prefer separation between their personal live and their professional life and be out only in their personal life. Hiding one’s identity could lead to feelings of lowered self-esteem and frustration at leading a dual life; being out could lead to discrimination, harassment, or even the loss of one’s job. There is no “right” answer.

Consider the following when making this decision: What is your involvement within the LGBTQIA+ community? Are most of your friends and support networks connected to the LGBTQIA+ community? If you have a partner, are they out in most situations? The strength of your connection and identification level to the LGBTQIA+ community may help you decide whether or not to come out in the workplace and how visible to be. Know that your attitudes will likely change through your lifetime and whenever you change jobs, you will likely re-evaluate how you feel about being out in that workspace.

Whether you believe that the only way to gain acceptance is to be out and visible, or your prefer to express your identity in a less direct, more persona matter, the choice is yours – only you can decide what is right for you.

Researching Organizations Policies and Climates

Industries vary on how accepting they are of LBGTQIA+ employers, though you should try to avoid generalizing before reaching a specific organization. Before interviewing, research the company’s official policies and resources, such as LGBTQIA+ employee groups, non-discrimination policies, domestic partnership benefits, and DEI statement. You can even contact the LGBTQIA+ employee group and talk to current staff about the organizational climate and what it’s really like to work there.

If you’re planning on relocating for your job, do some research on the location and determine whether the state, county, city, or community prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual and/or gender identity. There may be regional workplace or networking groups for LGBTAIQ+ individuals as well. In the absence of these groups, look for bookstores, queer-owned businesses, and other queer spaces to learn more about the region you are targeting.

Resume Writing

Should pronouns be on your resume? Consider your audience and determine ahead of time how out you want to be. If your research has shown that being out at work would be accepted, there is no reason not to include them. If you have any reason to believe that being out would be a problem, it is your decision whether to include them or not.

The same goes for activities such as LGBTQIA student groups, organizations, lobbying groups. These experiences are great opportunities to showcase your skills and experience, but if you have any indication that an employer may look disdainfully at these connections, you may choose to downplay them or omit them. If a great deal of your experience would be lost through omitting these, consider using a function resume format which focuses more on skills than on the specific experiences or roles that you had.

Interviewing Strategies

As with writing your resume, do research and think ahead of time how out you are willing to be during the interview process. Depending on your identity, you may not have “straight passing” or “cis passing” privilege in which people may make the assumption you are straight or cis.

If you have not yet researched the company you are interviewing at, you should do so before going in for an interview. Once you have information about the company’s culture, climate, and policies, you will have more information as to whether to come out or not during the interview. This is also a great opportunity to test the waters and ask questions about the company, particularly around their culture, advocacy, and institutional practices. Regardless of whatever DEI initiatives an organization has, you may still be presented with implicit bias from an interviewer.

Coming Out on the Job

Coming out after being hired may seem more intimidating than coming out during the interview process. Look for clues around the office that may show support of diversity, comfort and celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community, or if there are things you perceive as red flags. Consider too how you would advocate for a friend who was experiencing these red flags as you decide how to proceed.

This resources is adapted from a page on UPenn’s Career Services site.