Has The Time Come For Gay Rights In The Workplace?

Last month marked the first time in American history that a president discussed gay rights during his inauguration speech. Which raises the question: Has the time come to outlaw discrimination against gays in the workplace? It's still legal in 29 U.S. states to fire a worker for being gay, and on Friday the Wyoming Senate voted down a bill to join the 21 others where gays can't be fired for their sexual orientation.

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So for workers living in those 29 states, do you have any recourse if your boss fires you or refuses to promote you because of your sexual orientation? Can your employment benefits be transferred to a partner? What is the likelihood that Obama will issue an executive order to ban discrimination against gays in the federal workforce?

For its weekly "Lunchtime Live" video chat series, AOL Jobs spoke to a panel of experts -- AOL Jobs reporter Claire Gordon, AOL Jobs employment-law blogger Donna Ballman, Jonathan Lang, the director of Governmental Projects & Community Development for the New York gay rights group, Empire State Pride Agenda, and Ilya Shapiro, the senior fellow for constitutional studies at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.

Watch the highlights reel below, and then tell us: Do you think the time has come for gay rights in the workplace?

(To watch the full video chat, go here.)

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