Workplace Supports for LGBT Employees

What are workplace supports for LGBT employees? Workplace supports for LGBT employees are organizational policies and practices that are thought to improve the work experiences of LGBT employees and foster diversity within an organization. Although there isn’t one set of specific workplace supports for LGBT employees, one way of summarizing the contextual supports in the workplace is to categorize them as (a) formal LGBT-supportive policies and practices, (b) LGBT-supportive climates, and (c) supportive workplace relationships (Webster, Adams, Maranto, Sawyer, & Thoroughgood, 2017). Formal policies and practices that are supportive of LGBT employees include things like same-sex benefits coverage, LGBT resource groups, active recruitment of LGBT employees, and organizational commitment to the LGBT community (e.g., Button, 2001; Ragins & Cornwell, 2001). In general, climate refers to workers’ perceptions and interpretations about their work environment; an LGBT-supportive workplace climate indicates that employees perceive their work environment as accepting and affirming of LGBT employees (Liddle, Luzzo, Hauenstein, & Schuck, 2004). Supportive workplace relationships are thought to impact the experiences of LGBT workers by creating interpersonal resources that provide acceptance and support of LGBT workers (Webster et al., 2017). These relationships can be with a variety of coworkers, including subordinates, peers, supervisors, or top management (Webster et al., 2017). The existence of formal policies is measured through single or multiple items, completed by individual employees or organization representatives. Example items include, “Does your organization include sexual orientation in the definition of diversity?” and “Does your organizational welcome same-sex partners at company social events?” The most common way to measure LGBT climate is through the LGBT Climate Inventory (Liddle et al., 2004). Employees are asked to indicate how well each statement describes their workplace. Example items include, “LGBT people consider it a comfortable place to work” and “Coworkers make comments that seem to indicate a lack of awareness of LGBT issues.” Finally, LGBT-supportive relationships are assessed through a variety of measures that tap supportive relationships at various levels (Webster et al., 2017). Thus far, these measures are about support in general, rather than LGBT-specific support, and include items such as, “My coworkers are hostile towards me” (Griffith & Hebl, 2002) and “My supervisor takes pride in my accomplishments at work” (Rabelo & Cortina, 2014). July 22, 2020 Why are workplace supports for LGBT employees important? The most recent national data show that 4.5% of adults in the US identify as LGBT, 91% of whom are employed in the workforce (LGBT Demographic Data Interactive, 2019; Newport, 2018). Given recent population estimates, that is nearly 10.5 million people. Even that number is likely an underestimate, however, given the general stigma associated with identifying as LGBT and the risk of facing unfair treatment and discrimination at the workplace. Until the very recent decision by the Supreme Court to protect LGBT employees from discrimination based on sex, 30 states had no legislation protecting LGBT employees from discrimination. With the absence of legislation to protect LGBT workers from discrimination, workplace supports may offer other forms of protection. LGBT workplace supports are important because they are associated with LGBT employees’ (a) work attitudes (e.g., job satisfaction organizational commitment), (b) psychological strain (e.g., anxiety, depression, and burnout), (c) perceived discrimination, and (d) disclosure of their LGBT identity at work (Webster et al., 2017). The research does not allow for conclusions of causal connections, but any factors that have the potential to improve work attitudes, reduce psychological strain, and reduce perceived discrimination among LGBT employees are important to further examine. Though LGBT identity disclosure is not necessarily a goal for employers to pursue, it may be a behavioral indicator of psychological safety and comfort, which may be valuable in its own right. • Formal policies and practices are moderately associated with lower perceived discrimination and a higher likelihood of disclosure of LGBT identity. They are only modestly connected with job satisfaction and organizational commitment and very minimally associated with psychological strain. • An LGBT-supportive climate is strongly associated with lower perceived discrimination, a higher likelihood of disclosure, and higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment. It is moderately associated with lower strain. • Supportive workplace relationships are strongly associated with higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment and moderately associated with lower psychological strain. Note that these findings are already known to be generally true, independent of LGBT factors, but these findings indicate that they are also true of people who identify as LGBT. In terms of more LGBT-specific factors, supportive relationships are moderately associated with higher likelihood of disclosure and lower perceived discrimination. Having all three types of supports is better than fewer, but the strongest relationships are between (a) an LGBT-supportive climate and both disclosure and perceived discrimination and (b) workplace relationships and both work attitudes and psychological strain. Note that the more LGBT-specific supports (policies and climate) are most strongly connected to LGBTspecific outcomes (disclosure and perceived discrimination), whereas the more generic support type (workplace relationships) is most strongly related to more generic outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction, burnout). More research is needed to explore other types of potential outcomes and to examine the effect of interventions that improve LGBT workplace supports. QIC-WD Takeaways ► Workplace supports for LGBT employees include (a) formal LGBT-supportive policies and practices, (b) an LGBT-supportive climate, and (c) supportive workplace relationships. ► Formal policies and practices are (a) moderately associated with lower perceived discrimination and a higher likelihood of disclosure of LGBT identity, (b) modestly connected with job satisfaction and organizational commitment and (c) very minimally associated with psychological strain. ► An LGBT-supportive climate is strongly associated with lower perceived discrimination, a higher likelihood of disclosure, and higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment. It is moderately associated with lower psychological strain. ► Supportive workplace relationships are (a) strongly associated with higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment (b) and moderately associated with lower psychological strain, higher likelihood of disclosure, and lower perceived discrimination. ► There are no meta-analyses assessing the connection between LGBT workplace supports and turnover. ► Research is needed to test the effects of interventions to improve LGBT workplace supports. ► The most common way to measure LGBT climate is the LGBT Climate Inventory

Contextual determinants of re-reporting for families receiving alternative response: A survival analysis in a Midwestern State

Differential response (DR) has been widely adopted in over 30 states to address shortcomings of the traditional approach to child maltreatment reports in complex family and case circumstances. However, despite continued evaluation efforts, evidence of the effectiveness of DR remains inconclusive. The current study aims to assess the impact of a DR program and potential predictors, including service match and number of family case workers, on maltreatment re-reports in a Midwestern state. The study utilized a randomized control trial and assigned eligible families to either the Alternative Response (AR) track or Traditional Response (TR) track. The enrollment was implemented in a phased rollout covering all counties in the state. Data were drawn from state child welfare administrative datasets and case worker surveys. The probability and time to re-reporting was calculated using survival analysis, while adjusting for case-level covariates. Prior ongoing case (HR = 3.24, p \u3c 0.001), high risk level (HR = 1.43, p \u3c 0.05), and having only one worker (HR = 1.92, p \u3c 0.001) serve the case were strong predictors of re-reporting. The effect of service match within each level of prior ongoing case (No, Yes) was also a significant predictor of re-reporting (p \u3c 0.05). AR had limited, but nonsignificant, impact on preventing re-reporting after adjusting for these factors, as there was no difference in terms of re-reporting between DR tracks. However, findings suggest that matching child welfare service with family needs is an important component of child welfare practice. Implications for DR policy and practice are discussed

Assessment of carbon in woody plants and soil across a vineyard-woodland landscape

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Quantification of ecosystem services, such as carbon (C) storage, can demonstrate the benefits of managing for both production and habitat conservation in agricultural landscapes. In this study, we evaluated C stocks and woody plant diversity across vineyard blocks and adjoining woodland ecosystems (wildlands) for an organic vineyard in northern California. Carbon was measured in soil from 44 one m deep pits, and in aboveground woody biomass from 93 vegetation plots. These data were combined with physical landscape variables to model C stocks using a geographic information system and multivariate linear regression.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Field data showed wildlands to be heterogeneous in both C stocks and woody tree diversity, reflecting the mosaic of several different vegetation types, and storing on average 36.8 Mg C/ha in aboveground woody biomass and 89.3 Mg C/ha in soil. Not surprisingly, vineyard blocks showed less variation in above- and belowground C, with an average of 3.0 and 84.1 Mg C/ha, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This research demonstrates that vineyards managed with practices that conserve some fraction of adjoining wildlands yield benefits for increasing overall C stocks and species and habitat diversity in integrated agricultural landscapes. For such complex landscapes, high resolution spatial modeling is challenging and requires accurate characterization of the landscape by vegetation type, physical structure, sufficient sampling, and allometric equations that relate tree species to each landscape. Geographic information systems and remote sensing techniques are useful for integrating the above variables into an analysis platform to estimate C stocks in these working landscapes, thereby helping land managers qualify for greenhouse gas mitigation credits. Carbon policy in California, however, shows a lack of focus on C stocks compared to emissions, and on agriculture compared to other sectors. Correcting these policy shortcomings could create incentives for ecosystem service provision, including C storage, as well as encourage better farm stewardship and habitat conservation.</p

The limitations of hibonite as a single-mineral oxybarometer for early solar system processes

The relationships between the composition of hibonite with the general formula CaAl12-2x-yMgxTi4 +xTi3 +yO19, the oxidation state of Ti (Ti3 +/ΣTi, where ΣTi = Ti3 + + Ti4 +), and oxygen fugacity (fO2) were investigated experimentally. It was found that hibonite can be synthesised with a range of Ti3 +/ΣTi values at constant fO2 and with a constant Ti3 +/ΣTi value for a range of fO2s. It was also found that if hibonite with the formula CaAl12-yTi3 +yO19 (Ti3 +/ΣTi = 1) is equilibrated with a melt of CAI composition at fO2s below the iron-wüstite buffer then the resulting hibonite contained Mg, with Mg per formula unit (pfu) ~ 0.8 Ti pfu, and Ti3 +/ΣTi ~ 0.2, irrespective of the fO2. These results suggest that the availability of Mg, rather than fO2, is the key factor that determines Ti3 +/ΣTi of hibonite. The structures of synthetic samples of hibonite with the general formula CaAl12-2xMgxTi4 +xO19, where 0 ≤ X < 1, were determined by Rietveld refinement of X-ray powder diffraction data. The predominant site occupied by Ti4 + was found to change from M2 to M4 with increasing Ti content. The range of Ti concentrations over which the site occupancy changed corresponds to that observed in meteoritic hibonite. This change in the Ti4 + site produces changes in the Ti K-edge XANES spectra, particularly in the intensity of the pre-edge feature, for constant Ti3 +/ΣTi. The observed dependence of the pre-edge on the Ti4 + site was reproduced by ab initio simulations of the XANES spectra. The XANES spectra of natural hibonite with variable Ti content from the Murchison carbonaceous chondrite closely match the spectra of the synthetic samples with similar Ti contents. These differences in the spectra of meteoritic hibonite could be misinterpreted as being due to changes in Ti3 +/ΣTi, but are instead due to differences in ΣTi, which relate to the petrogenetic history. Crystal chemistry exerts a first order control on the Ti site occupancy and Ti3 +/ΣTi value of hibonite. As a result, no simple relationship between Ti3 +/ΣTi and fO2 should be expected. It is unlikely that hibonite will be useful as an oxybarometer for solar processes without Ti3 +/ΣTi standards that are compositionally matched to the unknown

Does urbanization explain differences in interactions between an insect herbivore and its natural enemies and mutualists?

Urbanization can alter the composition of arthropod communities. However, little is known about how urbanization affects ecological interactions. Using experimental colonies of the black bean aphid Aphis fabae Scopoli reared on Vicia faba L, we asked if patterns of predator-prey, host-parasitoid and ant-aphid mutualisms varied along an urbanization gradient across a large town in southern England. We recorded the presence of naturally occurring predators, parasitoid wasps and mutualistic ants together with aphid abundance. We examined how biotic (green areas and plant richness) and abiotic features (impervious surfaces and distance to town center) affected (1) aphid colony size, (2) the likelihood of finding predators, mutualistic ants and aphid mummies (indicating the presence of parasitoids), and (3) how the interplay among these factors affected patterns of parasitoid attack, predator abundance, mutualistic interactions and aphid abundance. The best model to predict aphid abundance was the number of mutualistic ants attending the colonies. Aphid predators responded negatively to both the proportion of impervious surfaces and to the number of mutualistic ants farming the colonies, and positively to aphid population size, whereas parasitized aphids were found in colonies with higher numbers of aphids and ants. The number of mutualistic ants attending was positively associated with aphid colony size and negatively with the number of aphid predators. Our findings suggest that for insect-natural enemy interactions, urbanization may affect some groups, while not influencing others, and that local effects (mutualists, host plant presence) will also be key determinants of how urban ecological communities are formed

Patient stratification using plasma cytokines and their regulators in sepsis:relationship to outcomes, treatment effect and leucocyte transcriptomic subphenotypes

Rationale Heterogeneity of the host response within sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and more widely critical illness, limits discovery and targeting of immunomodulatory therapies. Clustering approaches using clinical and circulating biomarkers have defined hyper-inflammatory and hypo-inflammatory subphenotypes in ARDS associated with differential treatment response. It is unknown if similar subphenotypes exist in sepsis populations where leucocyte transcriptomic-defined subphenotypes have been reported. Objectives We investigated whether inflammatory clusters based on cytokine protein abundance were seen in sepsis, and the relationships with previously described transcriptomic subphenotypes. Methods Hierarchical cluster and latent class analysis were applied to an observational study (UK Genomic Advances in Sepsis (GAinS)) (n=124 patients) and two clinical trial datasets (VANISH, n=155 and LeoPARDS, n=484) in which the plasma protein abundance of 65, 21, 11 circulating cytokines, cytokine receptors and regulators were quantified. Clinical features, outcomes, response to trial treatments and assignment to transcriptomic subphenotypes were compared between inflammatory clusters. Measurements and main results We identified two (UK GAinS, VANISH) or three (LeoPARDS) inflammatory clusters. A group with high levels of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines was seen that was associated with worse organ dysfunction and survival. No interaction between inflammatory clusters and trial treatment response was found. We found variable overlap of inflammatory clusters and leucocyte transcriptomic subphenotypes. Conclusions These findings demonstrate that differences in response at the level of cytokine biology show clustering related to severity, but not treatment response, and may provide complementary information to transcriptomic sepsis subphenotypes. Trial registration number ISRCTN20769191, ISRCTN12776039.</p