Date: Wed, 17 Aug 94 12:38:13 EDT From: RAKNGLTF@aol.com NATIONAL GAY & LESBIAN TASK FORCE POLICY INSTITUTE NEWS RELEASE Contact: Robin Kane, 202-332-6483, ext. 3311; 800-757-7736 pager COLORADO TO HOST FOURTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON GAY, LESBIAN, BISEXUAL WORKPLACE ISSUES Washington, D.C. -- August 16, 1994 -- Colorado will host the fourth annual "Out & Equal in the 90s," a conference on workplace issues impacting the gay, lesbian and bisexual community. Sponsored by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF), this year's event marks the first time the conference will be held outside Stanford University, its previous host site. This year's conference, "Working It Out in the Rockies," will be held October 15 and 16 at the Radisson Hotel in Denver, Colorado, with a one-day Human Resource Institute on October 17. The conference is an educational and motivational event designed to share the information and skills needed to create more positive workplaces for gay men, lesbians and bisexuals. The two-day event will feature nearly 50 sessions that cover workplace issues for corporations, small businesses, labor unions, public employment, and non-profit agencies. Topics will include Empowerment in Government Employment; HIV and Your Career; Unlearning Racism, Sexism and Classism in the Workplace; Sexual Orientation Issues in the Labor Movement; Strategies for Acquiring Domestic Partnership Benefits; Starting G/L/B-Owned Businesses; Building Coalitions with Other Diversity Groups; Influencing the Company's Bottom Line with Lavender Money; and others. A one-day institute for human resource professionals will be held on Monday, October 17. Human resource professionals include employee assistance counselors, EEO managers, and diversity trainers who hold positions capable of implementing gay-positive policies. "Workplace issues are a new and growing frontier for organizing and activism," said NGLTF Executive Director Peri Jude Radecic. "Workplace organizing is sweeping the nation, with new employee groups being established each week. Working It Out in the Rockies will be an important tool for activists in this exciting arena." A local host committee, Colorado Working It Out in the Rockies, includes individuals and employee groups from AT&T, U.S. WEST, Norwest Bank, and other companies which are assisting in the conference organizing. Colorado is home to a vibrant politically active gay community which approached NGLTF to propose the state as an ideal host for this important conference. Colorado has faced the challenge of the 1992 anti-gay Amendment Two, and the ensuing national boycott that was activated in response. "Working It Out In the Rockies" is the first national gay-related conference to be held in the state following the end of the national boycott, which was lifted last December after a state court declared Amendment Two unconstitutional. "This conference will provide a boost to workplace organizing in Colorado," said Sue Anderson, executive director of Equality Colorado and host committee member. "And it will show that supporting gay, lesbian, and bisexual issues in the workplace is good for business." "We know that coming out is the most important individual act to advance understanding and support for gay, lesbian and bisexual civil rights," Radecic said. "Therefore, it's clear that workplace organizing advances the whole movement by creating an atmosphere where employees can be out and visible on the job." In addition to NGLTF, other sponsors of the conference are Priority Pharmacy, the Gill Foundation, James C. Hormel. The conference site is wheelchair accessible and sign-language interpreting will be available. For registration information and other details about the 1994 Out and Equal in the '90s conference, call (303) 538-4318 or (202) 332-6483, ext. 3361. --30--