| History clearly exemplifies the discrimination and limited career opportunities of women and minorities. While Gay people are somewhat invisible because their sexual orientation is not as visible as a woman or minority of color, they face coterminous challenges. The concept of a glass ceiling has been proven and validated for women and minorities of color. This research was conducted on a similar ceiling (the pink ceiling) and how it directly impacts homosexuals in the workplace. This groundbreaking research is critical to understanding what barriers Gays or Lesbians experience when trying to penetrate the next level of leadership in an organization.; The purpose of this research was to: explore the workplace experiences of Gay men and Lesbian women, identify if perceived discrimination occurs against Gays and Lesbians in their attempts to reach higher levels of responsibilities in their organizations, and to determine if there is a relationship between Gay and Lesbian workplace experiences and the research that has been published on the glass ceiling women face in the workplace.; The survey tool was originally created and administered by the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board and entitled "A Question of Equity: Women and the Glass Ceiling in the Federal Government" (MSPB, 1992). In order to assess the experiences and attitudes of the Gay and Lesbian population, the survey tool was revised in order to specifically determine if Gay or Lesbian workers' confront similar barriers as women.; The survey results from the 111 respondents are reported in seven sections: demographic and work experience data, career information, future plans, general observations, open response question, general relationship to data from the glass ceiling survey, and a summary of the first four sections. The results of the research suggest that Gays and Lesbians do face a Pink Ceiling in the workplace. |
