West Palm Beach to Vote on Equal Benefits Ordinance

West Palm Beach, Florida (GayWebSource.com) — The City of West Palm Beach is poised to become the first public employer in the county to enact an equal benefits ordinance (EBO) requiring contractors to offer equal family benefits to all of their employees.

The ordinance is being considered at the request of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, a local non-profit organization which has successfully encouraged numerous local public employers to enact more than 75 laws and policies providing equal benefits for employees in nontraditional families.

“It is all about equal pay for equal work,” said Rand Hoch, President and Founder of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council.

The proposed ordinance is limited to city contracts of $50,000 or more, entered into by contractors with five or more employees. To comply with the proposed ordinance, a contractor offering health insurance and other family benefits to employees’ legally recognized spouses must offer the same benefits to employees’ same-sex spouses and domestic partners.

The law would not require city contractors to begin offering benefits not previously offered. If a contractor does not offer benefits to opposite-sex married employees, it is not required to offer benefits to employees in same-sex marriages or domestic partnerships.

“West Palm Beach has been in the forefront of equal benefits issues in Florida since 1992,” said Hoch. “The EBO paves the way to ensure that contractors embrace the same pro-family policies which the City of West Palm Beach has implemented over the years.”

“Requiring contractors to provide to employees with same-sex spouses and domestic partners benefits equal to those provided to employees whose marriages are recognized by the state of Florida will require contractors to maintain a competitive advantage in recruiting and retaining the highest quality work force, thereby improving the quality of goods and services that the city receives,” said Mayor Jeri Muoio.
Since the first equal benefit ordinances was enacted in 1996, numerous public employers across the nation have followed suit, including the state of California. In Florida, six public employers – Broward County, Hallandale Beach, Key West, Miami Beach, Oakland Park and Key West — have enacted equal benefits ordinances.

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