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6
min read
LGBT Discrimination in the Workplace: When Identity Becomes a Dilemma
Writer
Muhammad Firhat
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LGBT discrimination and groups of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities in Indonesia is a serious problem, especially in the workplace. LGBT discrimination in the workplace occurs from the early stages of recruitment to the working period. This includes blocking access to jobs, shutting down promotion opportunities, and the absence of access to social security.
What, then, is the root of this LGBT discrimination? Certainly, the lack of representation of minority sexual orientation and gender identity groups in the landscape of the Indonesian workforce plays a major role. Both in government structures and work institutions, gender and sexuality diversity is minimal, and this is rarely discussed. As a result, LGBT groups are vulnerable to discrimination, harassment, violence, and bullying; the resolution of these issues is often ignored.
Identities That Must Be Hidden
According to reports from the National Commission on Human Rights, the most common form of LGBT discrimination in the workplace is the lack of job opportunities for those who “defy” normative gender roles. Heteronormativity and the binary gender concept constructed in society affect the recruitment process, leading those with gender identities and sexual orientations considered abnormal to lose job access from the start.
To avoid discrimination, LGBT workers must hide their identities, which ultimately suppresses LGBT visibility in the workplace even further. Not to mention the psychological burden they must carry due to having to pretend at work, living two lives at once.
Ironically, discrimination and violence in the workplace haunt not only those who are openly LGBT. Those who conceal their sexual orientation and gender identity are not immune to harassment. This is closely related to coworkers' assumptions based on ways of dressing or daily body language, commonly referred to as gender expression. For example, a man expressing feminine gender will immediately be labeled gay. In reality, gender expression has no bearing on a person's sexual orientation. It is these gender stereotypes that serve as the basis for discrimination.
The issue becomes more complex in the context of transgender individuals. Many transgender people face challenges in changing their identity on ID cards, such as names and gender, which definitely poses challenges in obtaining employment and social security.
LGBT Discrimination Since the Job Search Process
Have you ever seen job openings that require “male or female”? Although seemingly harmless, whether acknowledged or not, this creates exclusion for transgender people or those with gender identities outside of binary constructs. Consequently, many of them are forced to work in the informal sector due to an unfriendly formal employment situation, which is also influenced by their level of education. Transgender individuals with low education levels and few professional skills often have to resort to becoming sex workers.
The Ministry of Social Affairs itself often conducts job training for transgender individuals to help them stop being sex workers. However, the training offered is always related to sewing or beauty practices. Indirectly, the Ministry of Social Affairs has amplified the stereotype that transgender people are only suited to exist within the entertainment and beauty industry. As a result, the working scope for transgender individuals becomes narrower instead of exploring other types of jobs.
In the recruitment process, LGBT discrimination often occurs as well. Based on interviews in the report PRIDE at work by the Population and Policy Studies Center of UGM, several transgender individuals must present themselves as “ideal” males or females. There is a story of one trans woman who had to cut her hair and wear a shirt to appear male. She still did not get the job because the interviewer suspected that she was not a heterosexual male.
Discrimination also occurs against men with feminine expressions because they are assumed to be gay, and women with masculine expressions because they are presumed to be lesbians. One story involves a gay man who faced remarks about his very gay appearance during a job interview. He concealed his homosexuality by denying the statement. Later, he was harassed with the comment, “I’ll join you at your boarding house, deh, to prove that you’re a man or a woman.”
Forms of LGBT Discrimination in the Workplace
Comments or jokes about the gender identity of LGBT individuals
Social marginalization
Bullying by other LGBT individuals
Intimidation
Physical violence
Upon further investigation, all acts of discrimination against LGBT individuals in the workplace stem from a low level of societal tolerance, particularly among colleagues. A survey by PRIDE at work (PSKK UGM, 2014) also found that only 3.92% of respondents felt that their treatment towards LGBT individuals in the workplace was very fair.
No Policies Protecting LGBT in the Workplace
Like sexual harassment, the majority of companies in Indonesia still lack policies to protect LGBT individuals from discrimination and violence at work. The legal ambiguity in Indonesia regarding discrimination and violence is the root of the issue. Indonesian law prohibits discrimination in any form or context. However, on the other hand, there is no clear and specific legal framework regulating gender and sexual orientation discrimination.
Articles 5 and 6 of Law No. 13 of 2003 concerning Manpower, for instance, state that discrimination in employment in any form is prohibited. Article 5 reads, “Every worker has equal opportunities without discrimination to obtain employment.” Meanwhile, Article 6 stipulates that “every worker/laborer has the right to receive equal treatment without discrimination from employers.” Therefore, discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation should likewise be classified as a violation of this law.
Furthermore, Article 28D paragraph 1 of the 1945 Constitution upholds equality for every person. Yet again, there is no specific reference concerning gender and sexual orientation.
89% of respondents in the PRIDE Survey (2014) indicated that there are no policies addressing LGBT issues in their workplaces. This shows a significant weakness in the protection of LGBT groups from potential discrimination and violence.
Supporting LGBT Inclusion in the Workplace
Stonewall Global Workplace Briefings 2019 has issued several recommendations that companies can implement to support inclusion and eliminate discrimination and violence against LGBT individuals in the workplace.
Introduce global anti-discrimination and anti-bullying and harassment policies that are explicitly inclusive of sexual orientation and gender identity
Appoint senior staff to promote the importance of LGBT equality in the workplace
Build networks for LGBT workers and ally programs. In this regard, existing labor unions should support LGBT equality issues in the workplace
Have a diversity and inclusion team or position specifically monitoring issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Networking with LGBT Groups and Communities in Indonesia
In the face of negative tendencies and condemnation from various parties rejecting LGBT equality and inclusion, accessing resources and references related to LGBT inclusion in the workplace is certainly difficult. To address this, there are several NGOs in Indonesia linked to the LGBT community. These NGOs work on issues of LGBT rights protection in various contexts, including the workplace.
Bali Rainbow Community, a group in Bali supporting education, outreach, and financial assistance for people living with HIV (PLHIV)
GAYa Nusantara, an NGO conducting research, advocacy, and services to support the LGBT community in Indonesia
Arus Pelangi, a membership association working to promote LGBTI rights in Indonesia
Yayasan Srikandi Sejati, a local organization empowering transgender individuals in Indonesia
GWL-INA, a national coordination center for HIV control programs and advocacy for reproductive and sexual health rights for men who have sex with men (MSM) and trans women.
Written by Muhammad Firhat
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Quid Pro Quo: When Career Opportunities Are Used as a Tool to Manipulate Sexual Consent
Have you ever encountered a story about a worker who had to offer sexual favors to get a promotion, keep their job, or gain career opportunities?
Stories like this may sound familiar. We can find them in various films and series, such as Bombshell, The Assistant, to Sleep Call. However, this situation is not merely a conflict in fictional stories. Similar practices still occur in the professional world and have a specific term: quid pro quo.
What Is Quid Pro Quo in the Context of Workplace Sexual Harassment?
Literally, quid pro quo means "this for that". In the context of workplace sexual harassment, this term refers to a situation where an employer, manager, supervisor, or coworker influences or attempts to influence a person's career decisions or working conditions in exchange for sexual acts or benefits.
Simply put, someone uses their position or influence to pressure another person into providing sexual favors under the lure of employment opportunities.
Dina, a Character in the Movie Sleep Call Who Became a Victim of Quid Pro Quo
Quid pro quo practices have three main characteristics:
Power imbalance. The perpetrator holds a higher position, seniority, or greater influence over the victim.
Career-related incentives. Promotion opportunities, employment, performance reviews, or other professional benefits are used as bargaining chips.
Accompanied by threats. Refusal may be followed by threats of lost opportunities, changes in working conditions, or other professional consequences.
Data from the 2022 Violence and Harassment in the Indonesian Workplace Survey by ILO Indonesia and the Never Okay Project shows that 50.48% of workers have experienced workplace sexual harassment and violence. In addition, 54.81% of perpetrators were supervisors, managers, or more senior colleagues. Meanwhile, 42.55% of victims chose to remain silent and did not know what to do.
These figures demonstrate that power imbalance is not an issue that can be ignored when discussing workplace safety.
Why Does Quid Pro Quo Continue to Occur?
One of the strongest factors triggering sexual harassment in the context of quid pro quo is organizational culture and systems.
There are two conditions that make this practice increasingly difficult to stop.
1. The perception that reporting will bring no change
When workers feel that reporting harassment will only be futile or even jeopardize their careers, a fear of retaliation arises.
Consequently, victims choose to stay silent because they feel they lack a safe space to seek justice.
2. The lack of consequences for perpetrators
When management fails to impose meaningful sanctions on perpetrators—especially if they hold high positions, are high performers, or are deemed financially vital to the company—the organization indirectly creates a safe haven for perpetrators.
This condition is known as institutional betrayal, where the institution that should protect its workers instead fails to provide the necessary protection.
The Impact of Quid Pro Quo on Victims' Careers
The impact of sexual harassment does not end with the experience endured by the victim. This practice can also affect their career sustainability and professional life.
Based on the 2022 Violence and Harassment in the Indonesian Workplace Survey:
47% of victims wanted to resign.
41.35% avoided meetings, schedules, or certain office areas.
22.96% experienced a decline in work performance and evaluations.
9.74% never wanted to work again.
This means that sexual harassment is not just an issue of individual behavior. This practice also impacts opportunities, productivity, and the victim's career sustainability.
How Can Organizations Prevent Quid Pro Quo?
In the fifth episode of the Not A Fiction Podcast, Wulansari, S.H., M.H., Legal Practitioner and Women's Rights Activist, recommended four essential steps for organizations and companies to prevent sexual harassment and violence:
Affirming commitment through policy. The organization's stance must be reflected in regulations, codes of conduct, and integrity pacts.
Providing clear grievance mechanisms. Reporting channels must be easily accessible and known to all workers.
Creating a safe and positive work environment. Every worker needs to have a workspace free from sexual harassment and violence.
Taking reports seriously. Organizations must respond to every report seriously while maintaining the confidentiality of the reporter.
Ultimately, creating a work ecosystem free from sexual harassment and violence is indeed no easy task. However, change is not impossible.
A safe work culture cannot be built solely through slogans, campaigns, or mere statements of support. It requires tangible policies, accessible protection mechanisms, and the organization's courage to hold perpetrators accountable regardless of their position or contribution.
Because career opportunities are not a tool to trade for sexual consent. And the workplace should be a space to thrive, not a space that forces someone to sacrifice their sense of safety just to maintain their career.
Let us start building a work system that stands with victims.
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Being Competent vs Being Liked. Why are female leaders always forced to choose?
"She's too emotional."
"She's too nice to lead."
Comments like these might sound simple. However, behind them lies a double standard that still affects how we view leadership in the workplace. In various organizations, female leaders are still faced with conflicting expectations. When women are firm and assertive, they risk being labeled bossy or emotional. But when women show empathy and warmth, their competence is questioned instead.
In Enemies with Benefits, the character Wine, who is newly appointed as a Supervisor, is immediately labeled "just a pretty face" due to her friendliness at work. To gain respect from her team, Wine feels she must change her demeanor and suppress her personality to appear more "worthy" of being a leader.
Wine's experience reflects a phenomenon known as the likability-competence trap.
A bias that often forces women to choose between being respected for their competence or liked for their personality. This double standard means that a female leader's competence is judged not only by her work results, but also by the way she speaks, expresses emotions, and builds relationships.
“women who lead are disliked, and women who are liked don’t lead.”
This kind of bias rarely presents itself in the form of overt discrimination. Instead, it arises through everyday comments, feedback, performance reviews, and promotion processes that appear objective, yet are still influenced by unconscious gender stereotypes (unconscious bias).
Consequently, a woman's leadership is often judged not just by things that objectively support work success, such as the quality of decisions, work results, or the impact created. Instead, assessments are also influenced by the extent to which a female leader is considered "friendly" enough, "assertive," "pleasant," or aligned with gender expectations that still linger in the workplace.
For organizations, the impact is not only felt by individuals. Bias in evaluating leadership can limit the diversity of leadership styles, hinder creativity and human resource development, and make decision-making processes less fair.
Image: A scene of Wine crying upon hearing gossip from her coworkers about her.
Building an inclusive workplace is not just about opening up more opportunities for women or vulnerable groups to lead. What is equally important is ensuring that every process of evaluation, promotion, and feedback is conducted with fair standards. Inclusive leadership begins when competence becomes the basis of evaluation, not stereotypes about how a leader "should" behave.
Focus on competence.
Focus on work results, objective KPIs, leadership quality, and impact, rather than whether someone seems “friendly enough” or “assertive enough” in their interactions.
Distinguish leadership style from leadership ability.
Not all leaders have to show the same style to be effective. Diverse leadership styles can support the growth of creativity in the work culture and in decision-making. Support women to lead authentically.
Review the language in performance reviews.
Avoid feedback that focuses on someone's personality or expression, such as being "too emotional", "lacking warmth", or "lacking authority". Provide specific, work-behavior-based, and actionable feedback.
Be aware of bias before making decisions.
Reflect on whether evaluations, promotions, or feedback are truly based on performance, unaffected by unconscious gender stereotypes (unconscious bias).
Because in the end, competence has no gender.
An equal workplace is a place where everyone can lead authentically, without the need to suppress themselves to gain respect. Have we truly evaluated and appreciated leaders based on their competence, integrity, and the impact they create?
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Creating Proactive Mechanisms for Handling Sexual Harassment: Learning from Filing for A Love
“At our office, we are safe; after all, there has never been any report received so far.”
The above statement cannot be used as a foundation to validate the absence of handling mechanisms for sexual harassment and violence in a company or institution.
For many corporate managements, the absence of reports is often used as an indicator that their work environment is completely clean and safe. However, the reality is not that simple. The absence of reports does not mean there are no cases at all. Regulatory documents must still be possessed and actively implemented, even if there has never been a report of violations.
The Danger of Not Having Clear Mechanisms
Based on data released by the Never Okay Project in 2022, many workplaces still do not have clear mechanisms to handle cases of sexual violence and harassment.
As many as 34.53% of respondents mentioned that their workplaces do not have mechanisms against sexual violence and harassment. Meanwhile, another 23.53% of respondents did not even know whether their office already has such handling mechanisms or not.
This is dangerous. Ignorance and the absence of clear mechanisms will make many victims and witnesses choose to remain silent. Because they do not know where to report and receive handling.
Learning from the Haemu Audit Team
The K-drama Filing for Love, in episode 4, tells the story of Lim Ha-Kyong (a junior engineer) who experienced sexual harassment and intimidation by James (the director). The victim felt pressured and chose not to report her situation when asked by Jo In-A (the Leader of the Haemu Audit Team).
Even though the victim claimed "nothing happened," In-A still conducted an investigation according to the applicable protocols and policies. The process was carried out without compromising the victim's position.
In-A's brave decision enabled the existing policies to be executed effectively. Evidence was successfully gathered, the perpetrator was punished, and the victim was slowly able to recover and return to work.
This story aims to show that active intervention from the company is proven to be able to save victims while maintaining organizational integrity.
Why a Proactive Mechanism is Important
Providing a responsive protection system is not just a form of care for staff, but a strategic investment for business continuity. The benefits for the company are not small
Creating psychological safety. This means employees can work peacefully without being overwhelmed by anxiety about their safety.
Increasing employee and team productivity. A healthy work environment, free from intimidation, of course, has a positive impact on work performance.
Building a healthy and sustainable work culture. This is possible due to deeply rooted values of professionalism and mutual respect within the company ecosystem.
Maintaining and enhancing business reputation. Doing business in the digital era makes companies that are committed to humanitarian issues highly attractive (employer branding) in the eyes of job applicants and investors.
Mitigating management crisis and public relations (PR) risks. Having internal handling SOPs prevents cases from escalating into public scandals, while also fostering public trust in the company's handling.
Two-Way Synergy to Create a Proactive and Effective Mechanism
A mechanism, no matter how good, cannot run effectively if its implementers are confused and intimidated.
Adapting the global guidelines from the International Labour Organization (ILO), here are the things companies can do to create proactive and effective mechanisms against sexual violence and harassment.
From the policy perspective:
Strictly defining what constitutes clear sexual harassment and violence in the workplace.
Declaring a zero-tolerance stance against all forms of sexual violence and harassment.Guaranteeing a clear, confidential, and safe reporting mechanism for reporters.
Having investigation SOPs that side with the victim's rights (a victim-centered approach).
Requiring periodic risk assessments to mitigate potential violations.
From the HR readiness perspective:
Holding mandatory training related to anti-harassment policies for all levels of employees.
Forming a special team for handling cases and providing them with specialized training (as demonstrated by Jo In-A and her Audit Team).
Providing specialized training for managers, supervisors, and team leaders to be sensitive in detecting issues.
Guaranteeing access to dedicated, easy-to-use channels for reporting.
Thorough, transparent, and justice-oriented handling of harassment cases has been proven to rebuild employees' trust in the company's credibility.
The first step to breaking the chain of workplace sexual violence begins when management dares to open its eyes, draft strict regulations, and train its HR to be proactive protective guards.
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