Employment Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation: A Hong Kong Study

The survey defined sexual orientation minorities as “all persons who self-identify with one or more of the following categories: homosexual, gay, lesbian, tongzhi, lala, bisexual, men who have sex with men (MSM), women who have sex with women (WSW), women-loving women, queer, and same-gender loving.” The survey enumerated a broad array of categories, as opposed to limiting itself to the categories of gay, lesbian, and bisexual (LGB), because the construct of LGB identity is arguably Western-centric (see Chou 2001). Note that the definition of sexual orientation minorities includes individuals who identify primarily with homosexual conduct (i.e., “men who have sex with men”) as well as individuals who identify with more culturally-loaded social group labels (e.g., “gay”).

It is worth noting that the ordinances addressing sex, disability, and family status protect against not only private sector discrimination but also governmental discrimination. In this regard, these statutory protections overlap with the Basic Law and Bill of Rights Ordinance. The antidiscrimination ordinances provide greater protection, however, because they allow individuals to file discrimination complaints with the Hong Kong Equal Opportunities Commission; doing so is significantly less expensive than filing a complaint based on the Basic Law or Bill of Rights Ordinance, which typically involves high-cost litigation. Accordingly, passing a sexual orientation antidiscrimination ordinance could strengthen protections against the state, in addition to providing protection against private-sector discrimination.

The 2005 government survey provides the most recent and complete snapshot of public attitudes. It is worth highlighting that there have been additional studies on Hongkongers’ attitudes toward homosexuality. The government conducted a study on attitudes in 1995. Concerns regarding that study’s methodology have since been raised (e.g., Petersen 1997; Chan 2005). Other studies have focused on narrow segments of the population, such as college students (queryChoi 1991, as cited in Cheung 1997) and medical students (Hon et al. 2005). Finally, the press has reported other studies of public opinions on homosexuality, including a well-publicized survey by Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Caritas that does not appear to have been published independently (Cribb 2004; Apple Daily 2000, as cited in queryChan 2004). These studies’ findings have been mixed. Because our focus is discrimination, which is distinguishable from public attitudes, we do not discuss in detail these studies of attitudes.

The survey utilized traditional Chinese characters, which are standard in Hong Kong, as opposed to the simplified characters that are used primarily on mainland China.

For example, the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights defined discrimination to include “discrimination in access to and maintenance of employment on the grounds of . . . sexual orientation . . . which has the intention or effect of impairing or nullifying exercise of the right to work on a basis of equality” (United Nations Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights 2006).

This category included the International Baccalaureate Diploma, the British General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and Advanced Level General Certificate of Education (A-Levels), high school diplomas from international schools, etc.

Note that we use the term “perceived” discrimination to refer to instances where respondents believed that they themselves suffered discrimination. Other authors sometimes use the term “perceived discrimination” as shorthand to refer to perceived discrimination against sexual minorities at large.