By Brent Delveaux and Seta Monfred

Over the last several decades, Canadians have slowly become more and more accepting of the rights of LGBTQ people. From the Human Rights Act to the Criminal Code – and even the release of a loonie celebrating 50 years of equality – the rights of individuals are being protected and defended in a variety of ways.

In the workplace, this means a number of changes as well. Some of these changes are legalistic, while others are the result of social change and inclusivity practices. Employee benefits providers are at a crossroads, adapting language and even whole programs to meet the needs of LGBTQ plan members and their employers.

Current Trends

Each provider has adapted in different ways, but there are a few common practices to implement more LGBTQ inclusive employee benefits.

  • Recognize greater gender diversity. There are different ways of allowing for non-binary genders in forms and other communications. Some benefits providers have removed gender completely from their optional life premium rate tables, while others have added third or fourth gender options.
  • Allow for gender-neutral options. The language used in plans is being reviewed and updated. Some insurers are incorporating gender-neutral language into contracts and communications: replacing he/she with they/them, omitting titles such as Mr./Mrs./Ms., and replacing references to family members with gender-neutral words like child instead of son/daughter.
  • Review product offerings. Many benefits providers are reviewing their complete list of products and services to ensure they reflect the variety of needs of each client and plan member. Some are creating new products specifically designed to help with coverage for related surgical procedures undergone by gender diverse plan members. These products can help plan members and their dependents through a transition or provide support in other ways.

The Open Questions

As with any change, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding these issues. The questions are broad and varied, and they cover a range of topics and concerns.

Some of the more common questions include: fertility drug coverage and who can be covered (i.e., surrogates in same sex partnerships), how sex changes are reflected in an employee’s benefits plan and if they are eligible for disability coverage during recovery from sexual reconstructive surgery, how to acknowledge and incorporate preferred pronouns, as well as gender differentiations and how those affect premium rates.

Moving Forward

Much of what benefits providers are developing is heading in the right direction for LGBTQ plan members. But when it comes to gender inclusiveness, not all insurers are at the same stage of change. While some have already implemented a variety of significant changes and may even be open to further considerations, others are still in a preliminary review phase or have not yet begun. There is still much to be done to ensure consistent, considerate, and inclusive treatment of plan members across all circumstances.

HUB International’s team of brokers has extensive experience in designing employee benefit programs and can help you gather the data you need to provide appropriate coverage to all your employees.