Dallas Arboretum addresses complaints of LGBTQ discrimination

DALLAS — LGBTQ advocates are calling for change on the Dallas Arboretum after a number of complaints over discrimination. On Monday, the arboretum’s board met for an hour and revealed an inventory of actions they plan to take, together with reviewing the work tradition and altering a number of insurance policies.

In the previous a number of months no less than three Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaints have been filed towards the Dallas Arboretum, all by individuals who confronted LGBTQ discrimination. That led Resource Center, an LGBTQ advocacy group, to ship a letter to the Dallas Arboretum final week calling for a number of adjustments. In a response Monday night, the arboretum mentioned it has already taken a number of actions together with hiring an HR consulting agency and it additionally outlined what it plans to do transferring ahead.

A redacted EEOC grievance supplied to WFAA from Lambda Legal, the legislation agency representing the worker, from final November, is from a nonbinary worker who says they began to face poor remedy from managers after placing pronouns of their e-mail signature and different workers did the identical. The supervisor mentioned the pronouns and any pins worn by workers displaying their pronouns additionally needed to be eliminated whereas e-mail signatures with quotes and bible verses might proceed getting used.

The worker, whose identify was redacted, additionally mentioned programming highlighting LGBTQ folks couldn’t be talked about in advertising. After getting visibly upset in a gathering the place managers advised the worker the arboretum wouldn’t “promote and agenda,” the worker was fired the subsequent week, in accordance with the grievance.

“The bottom line is there’s discrimination happening at the arboretum and there’s a culture that is not supporting its employees,” Cece Cox, Resource Center’s CEO, mentioned. “Current and former employees have spoken to me. They’ve spoken to my colleagues and we’re hearing a lot of things that aren’t right.”

In its response Monday, the board’s letter says it has made a number of adjustments to its worker guide together with permitting for the use of pronouns in e-mail signatures.

“The Arboretum strives to enhance and to be an excellent instance of inclusiveness,” Board Chairman Jim Ryan mentioned within the response letter. “The recent claims have caused the organization to take steps over the past months to examine and improve its policies, procedures, practices and culture so that the organization can undergo institutional change and ensure that all of its constituents are heard and welcome.”

Most just lately, David Jeffcoat, a 57-year-old arboretum worker, filed an EEOC grievance saying that after seven years of working on the arboretum he acquired poor remedy after he revealed he was homosexual. The grievance mentioned Jeffcoat was employed in 2014 as a gate attendant earlier than changing into a supervisor.

In October 2021, he known as his supervisor to inform them his “partner” had COVID-19. He mentioned he quickly began getting harsher remedy and more durable duties. In February on 2022, Jeffcoat slipped on ice after which missed the subsequent day of work.

He says a later he was fired with the listed purpose being a failure to finish elements of a efficiency enchancment plan, however Jeffcoat says the firing stems from popping out to his supervisor.

“We are sad that an employee would feel they had been treated unfairly and will thoroughly investigate the allegations made in the Charges of Discrimination,” the Dallas Arboretum mentioned in an announcement response in mid-June. “The Arboretum does not comment on confidential personnel matters, including investigations.”

Last week, Cox despatched the letter to the arboretum outlining issues and proposals for change.

“While Dallas is a shining example of welcoming and inclusion, that shine today is tarnished by the Dallas Arboretum,” the letter mentioned.

It continues by outlining points within the complaints and calling for an investigation into them. It additionally outlines a number of requests for the arboretum.

First, the letter asks the arboretum to find out if office practices violate Dallas’s non-discrimination ordinance and subsequently its contract to handle the 66 acre of land town owns.

It additionally asks for obligatory cultural competency coaching for workers and for to institute LGBTQ+ protecting insurance policies in its handbook together with permitting for pronouns on e-mail signatures, pronoun pins and FMLA insurance policies for LGBTQ people and households.

“It’s really important that workplaces are welcoming and inclusive of all their employees,” Cox mentioned. “This is a progressive city that has people coming into it by the thousands. Business is booming. All kinds of people live here.”

The letter ends by asking for equitable advantages for workers together with gender-affirming healthcare and a transparent plan on how the arboretum plans to implement the insurance policies.

Since sending the letter, Cox mentioned Arboretum’s president, Mary Brinegar, texted Resource Center’s board president to share that the Dallas Arboretum had already taken most of the actions really helpful.

“I don’t know what those things are. I don’t know if that’s correct,” Cox mentioned. “What I do know is changing a culture is systemic and it takes time, attention and accountability so I hope the arboretum is focus on those things.”

At Monday’s assembly, Ryan outlined that in addition to the brand new handbook insurance policies, the arboretum additionally up to date its on-line DEI assertion and is requiring a compulsory employees coaching that may talk about range.

“We haven’t been sitting still when all of this has been percolating,” Ryan mentioned in an interview with WFAA Monday. “We’ve taken several actions to improve our diversity, equity and inclusion program and we’re taking additional actions to make the arboretum an even better place than it is now.”

The letter response mentioned on the assembly contains 5 new steps the arboretum plans to absorb the longer term. They embrace getting suggestions on pay construction, depart insurance policies and grievance procedures, reviewing hiring insurance policies with an emphasis on range, supporting new DEI packages on the arboretum, reviewing drivers of worker turnover and a piece tradition evaluation completed by the employed HR agency.

“We want a neutral independent party to come in and do those interviews with employees and do an independent review of what the culture is,” Ryan mentioned. “We’re a welcoming place and we make it a priority to be inclusive both internally and externally. That’s what I want people to know.”

The response additionally addresses the declare from the Resource Center that the arboretum is violating non-discrimination insurance policies, saying, “Counsel to the Arboretum has accomplished its investigation of the allegations in two of the EEOC claims and people investigations didn’t lead to a discovering that the Arboretum engages in employment practices in violation of Dallas City Code provisions that prohibit discrimination.”

If the arboretum had violated the contract, it might have led to motion from town to seek out new administration for the attraction that sees greater than 1 million guests yearly.