The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners voted this week to amend and expand Gwinnett's nondiscrimination policy.
Under the current policy, a Gwinnett County employee cannot be discriminated against based on sex, race, color, national origin, gender (identity and expression), sexual orientation, age, religious or political affiliation, marital status or if they are pregnant, disabled, active duty military or a veteran.
The new portion of the policy now protects a person's ancestry, family status, immigration status and homeless status.
"Discrimination takes many different forms and it’s important for Gwinnett County to take the lead in identifying and eliminating them,” said Chairwoman Nicole Hendrickson in a media statement released after the vote. “People need to know we apply the Gwinnett Standard to our organization as well as to our employment opportunities.”
Additionally, the policy amendment draws inspiration from the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair - or CROWN - Act. The CROWN Act ensures that race-based hairstyles, textures and protective styles such as braids, locs, twists and knots are protected in the workplace.
“People are multi-faceted with many abilities and in an evolving and diverse community like Gwinnett, we’re striving not to let things like hair styles or family arrangements get in the way of recruiting and promoting the best talent we can find to assist in delivering superior services to our taxpayers,” said Vice-Chair and District 4 Commissioner Marlene Fosque.
County Administrator Glenn Stephens recommended the updates to the Merit Board in July, and the Merit Board approved the changes and forwarded them to the county commission for consideration.
The policy changes take effect Nov. 1, 2021.
