LGBTQ2 Millennials Pessimistic About Financial Stability
They are likely to have high debt and low savings and worry about workplace discrimination, TD Bank finds.
Only half of millennial full-time and part-time workers in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and two-spirit community view their financial situation positively, nine percentage points lower than their older counterparts, according to a survey released Tuesday by TD Bank and TD Securities.
Like millennials — and older folks — in the general population, many of these workers have been forced to put off major life goals because of student loan debt: for 63% of survey participants accumulating emergency savings, for 51% saving for retirement and for 46% buying a house.
Seventy-one percent of the millennial workers surveyed who had a bachelor’s degree reported outstanding loans, the median debt being $40,000 per person. About one in five owed $100,000 or more.
Sixty percent of respondents reported that they had less than three months of emergency savings.
Community Marketing & Insights conducted an online survey in April and May among 1,251 LGBTQ community members in the U.S. and District of Columbia, randomly selected from CMI’s 90,000-plus LGBTQ research panel.
TD noted in a statement that the Equality Act recently passed by the House of Representatives would ensure equal treatment in the workplace. At present, however, discrimination remains a daily reality for many workers in the U.S.
Twenty-two percent of millennial survey participants said that being out about their sexual orientation to more senior staff would hurt their career advancement.
Less than one-third reported seeing senior management members in the workplace who were out as LGBTQ2 community members even though older generations were as likely as millennials to be out.
TD said many employers must do more to keep up with the cultural shifts that are being driven by conversations around inclusivity, gender identity and diversity.
Take use gender-neutral pronouns. Forty-two percent of millennial workers in the survey said they either used gender-neutral pronouns for themselves or had a partner or close friend who did so, compared with only 26% of Gen Xers and baby boomers.
Two-thirds of millennial workers said it was most important that a workplace have a nondiscrimination policy around gender identity and expression.
Only 18% of millennial workers reported that they had access to an LGBTQ2 employee resource group at their place of work. Of those who did have such access, 57% said they were members.
“The freedom to be your fullest self that equality enables in each of us can empower success in every facet of our lives,” Jonathan Lovitz, an LGBTQ2 youth and business advocate, said in the statement.
“This survey shows us that it is important for organizations like TD Bank to take steps in understanding the obstacles that LGBTQ2+ communities face so we can better become advocates for cultivating inclusive environments in our workplaces, and throughout society.”
The TD survey found LGBTQ2 positivity to be an important consideration for millennials when choosing an employer, with almost two-thirds of workers looking at an employer’s reputation as an inclusive organization before pursuing employment opportunities.
The bank said organizations that can foster a workplace culture where the LGBTQ2 community feels supported and safe will be more competitive and better able to attract and retain the best talent.
TD said its support of WorldPride 2019 aligned with the bank’s rollout of The Ready Commitment, a corporate citizenship platform designed to open doors for more inclusivity through community giving in financial security, vibrant planet, connected communities and better health.
It said the bank would have two floats in the June 30 New York City Pride March, and would also be a sponsor the New York Public Library’s Stonewall 50 Exhibit.