The nexus of sexual orientation and gender in the determination of earnings

This analysis of 1989-96 General Social Survey data reveals how sexual orientation and gender jointly influence earnings outcomes. Gay and bisexual men experienced a 30-32 % income disadvantage relative to heterosexual peers, while lesbian and bisexual women enjoyed a wage premium of 17-23%. The disparate earnings effects of sexual orientation across genders suggest that workplace discrimination may be only one factor accounting for measured wage differentials associated with sexual orientation. These findings qualify pioneer-ing work on the subject that indicated that wage differentials were attributable largely to employer bias. A further analysis that distinguishes the separate effects of gender, marital status, and sexual orientation suggests that differen-tials long attributed to marital status may in part reflect previously unobserved effects of sexual orientation. ublic policy debates over the need for employment nondiscrimination poli-cies that incorporate sexual orientation pro-tections-including continuing debate over the proposed federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA)--have raised discussion of the economic status of les-bian, gay, and bisexual workers. Groups opposing employment protections portray lesbians and gay men as an economically privileged group, while gay and lesbian rights organizations point to extensive an-ecdotal evidence to argue that workplace discrimination has pervasive, deleterious effects on non-heterosexual workers. Early empirical research revealing negative wage differentials associated with lesbian, gay