Work and Well-being Among LGBTQ+ Adults in Unsettled Times

Abstract

The rise in precarious employment in recent decades has left a substantial portion of the U.S. workforce in insecure jobs with poor job quality, with the divide between “good” jobs and “bad” jobs becoming even starker during the COVID-19 pandemic. Within this context, little is known about how LGBTQ+ workers (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, queer, or another minoritized sexual or gender identity) are faring, even though previous research suggests they may be among those most vulnerable to negative structural and interpersonal factors affecting workers’ well-being in unequal workplaces. Using a multi-method quantitative and qualitative research approach, this project asks: 1) How are LGBTQ+ adults experiencing and responding to an unequal work landscape in this context? 2) What are the implications for well-being? I investigate these questions by analyzing two data sources: the 2015 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) Occupational Health Supplement, a nationally-representative survey collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and in-depth qualitative interviews with a demographically and occupationally diverse sample of 43 LGBTQ+ workers I conducted for this project. Results from the quantitative analysis of pre-pandemic data suggest employed sexual minority adults are significantly more likely to be exposed to negative temporal and psychosocial job conditions, including work/non-work interference, time urgency, harassment, and limited supervisor support. Compared to heterosexual workers, sexual minority workers overall feel more rushed and less supported on the job. Building on this descriptive documentation, the qualitative analyses used interview data to uncover mechanisms related to inequalities in job quality conditions and experiences. Interview findings showed LGBTQ+ workers emphasized both conventional job quality factors (e.g., pay, benefits, advancement) as well as unique job quality factors (e.g., misgendering, physical and interpersonal safety concerns) as shaping perceptions of what makes a “good” or “bad” job. Taken together, the dissertation makes contributions including: 1) providing the first analysis of how job quality disparities vary by sexual orientation at the national level in the United States; 2) identification of unique mechanisms through which job conditions are associated with well-being across social locations; and 3) new insights into the conceptualization and measurement of job quality in sociological literature.