Bostock v. Clayton County: Ruling, Standard, and Covered Employers

In Bostock v. Clayton County, the Supreme Court held 6-3 that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars employers from firing a worker because of sexual orientation or gender identity, because doing so is a form of discrimination based on sex.¹²³

What the Court Decided

Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion. The Court concluded that an employer cannot discriminate against a person for being homosexual or transgender without also discriminating against that person based on sex.¹

The reasoning is straightforward. If an employer fires a male worker for being attracted to men but keeps a female worker who is attracted to men, the employer is penalizing the man for a trait it tolerates in a woman. The same logic reaches transgender employees, because the employer is reacting to a difference between the worker’s sex at birth and their current identity.¹

The Legal Standard for a Claim

An employer violates Title VII if sex is a but-for cause of the firing, meaning the termination would not have happened if the employee’s sex were different.¹ Sex does not have to be the only reason. An unlawful practice is also established when sex was a motivating factor in the decision, even if other factors influenced it too.⁴

Which Employers Are Covered

Title VII reaches employers with 15 or more employees for each working day in at least 20 calendar weeks during the current or previous calendar year. The statute’s definition of employer excludes certain entities, including the United States government and Indian tribes.⁵ Workers at smaller employers or excluded entities fall outside this specific protection, though other federal, state, or local laws may still apply.

The Three Cases Behind the Ruling

The decision resolved three consolidated lawsuits brought by employees who said they were fired because they were gay or transgender:²

Gerald Bostock, a child welfare services coordinator in Georgia.
Donald Zarda, a skydiving instructor.
Aimee Stephens, an employee at a funeral home.

The three cases came up through different federal appellate courts before the Supreme Court agreed to hear them together.

Where to Find the Opinion

The full text is published in the United States Reports, the Supreme Court Reporter, and the Lawyers’ Edition, and is also available through the Court’s docket under No. 17-1618.¹²

1
Justia. Bostock v. Clayton County
2
Supreme Court of the United States. Supreme Court Docket No. 17-1618
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2 – Section: (m)
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e