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3 - LGBTQ+ Individuals and Precarious Work

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2024

By
Oscar Holmes ,
Erhan Aydin ,
Richard Greggory Johnson  and
Emir Ozeren
Edited by
Elina Meliou ,
Joana Vassilopoulou  and
Mustafa F. Ozbilgin
Elina Meliou
Affiliation:
Brunel University
Joana Vassilopoulou
Affiliation:
Brunel University
Mustafa F. Ozbilgin
Affiliation:
Brunel University
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Summary

Precarious work characterised by low pay, inadequate and variable hours, and short-term/temporary contracts refers to the employment conditions that include the situations of uncertainty’, ‘instability’, and ‘insecurity’. Precarious work arrangements skyrocketed in the 1970s as a result of the worldwide recession and the weakened power and forced reduction of organised labour. As a result, considerable power shifted back to employers who steadily repeal employment protections whenever possible. This chapter seeks to shed light on the missing link between diversity and precarious work from the viewpoint of sexual and gender identity minorities whose voices have been silenced and marginalised in mainstream discussions. Due to the long history of legalised discrimination and the stigmatisation they experience, LGBTQ+ employees are overrepresented in precarious work arrangements. Since LGBTQ+ employees are already a vulnerable population, the adverse effects of precarious work arrangements are exacerbated. We adopt an institutional approach to explore the challenges LGBTQ+ individuals face in precarious work concerning macro-institutional factors (e.g., social, organisational, political, legal, and economic) and micro-level factors (e.g., interpersonal discrimination, exclusion, incivility within organisations). Through case studies from Turkey and the United States, we demonstrate the political and social mechanisms that legitimise and proliferate precarious work arrangements for LGBTQ+ individuals. We conclude the chapter by highlighting research questions that scholars should pursue further to uncover the unique challenges LGBTQ+ individuals endure in precarious work arrangements.

Keywords

LGBTQ+diversityprecarious workbiasinsecurity
Type
Chapter
Information
Diversity and Precarious Work During Socio-Economic Upheaval
Exploring the Missing Link
 , pp. 36 - 57
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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