Today is the NYC Pride March, part of an annual celebration to commemorate the Stonewall Riots of 1969 – the event(s) that sparked the beginning of the modern Gay/LGBT Rights movement.
Various laws protect employees against discrimination because of their sexual orientation.
For example, the New York City Human Rights Law provides, in relevant part:
It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice: (a) For an employer or an employee or agent thereof, because of the actual or perceived … sexual orientation of any person: (1) To represent that any employment or position is not available when in fact it is available; (2) To refuse to hire or employ or to bar or to discharge from employment such person; or (3) To discriminate against such person in compensation or in terms, conditions or privileges of employment. N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-107(1)(a).
The statute defines “sexual orientation” as “heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality.” N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-102(20).
The New York State Human Rights Law also explicitly prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation. N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(1)(a).
Update: Subsequent to this post, the Supreme Court held that Title VII’s prohibition of discrimination based on “sex” encompasses discrimination based on sexual orientation. Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, 590 U.S. 644 (2020).