The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled ruled that there is a constitutional right to same sex marriage under the 14th Amendment, striking down state-level bans on the practice.
In a 5-4 decision, the court majority ruled that the equal protections granted by the 14th Amendment extend to the right to marry regardless of whether a marriage involves same sex or opposite sex partners.
Here is an excerpt from the NPR post this morning:
“States cannot keep same-sex couples from marrying and must recognize their unions, the Supreme Court says in a ruling that for months has been the focus of speculation. The ruling was made by a 5-4 decision.
The justices ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges, which is linked to three other cases. Together, they involve a dozen couples who challenged same-sex marriage bans in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee – the only states whose bans on marriage between gay and lesbian couples had been sustained by a federal appeals court.
Today’s ruling overturned that decision by the 6th Circuit Court. As the Supreme Court’s summary states, ‘The history of marriage is one of both continuity and change.’ ”
Employer Impact?
Regardless of what state you live and work in: As of today, all employers must recognize workers in same sex relationships as legally married once the marriage certificate is in place. All states will immediately begin allowing and recognizing same-sex marriage regardless of any previous state level ban.
FMLA benefits are no longer an issue. Any benefit or language defining “spouse” in the employment vocabulary is now inclusive of same-sex legal marriages.
Re-write your policies. SCOTUS has spoken.
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Lisa Smith
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