Money problems are a big concern among LGBTQ+ millennials, according to a new survey by TD Bank and TD Securities. Photocredit: Getty
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Some worrisome new data shows that as Pride month gets underway, one generation of LGBTQ+ Americans feels no pride about how they’re making ends meet. This group says it’s struggling with a lot more day-to-day financial pressure than any other generation.
And if you guessed it’s the “back in my day” Baby Boomers, you’d be wrong; it’s the millennials who gripe most about money troubles, according to TD Bank and TD Securities.
Their new workplace and financial equality survey of American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and Two-Spirit workers reveals that half of LGBTQ+ millennials are pessimistic about managing their money, 9% more than other generations.
More than 1,200 full time and part-time workers who live in the U.S. and identify as LGBTQ+ were asked to rate their current financial situation.
Only 50% of millennial LGBTQ+ workers — those born between 1977 and 1995 — described their finances positively, according to the TD Bank survey released this week, compared to 59% for both Generation X (those born between 1965-1976) and Baby Boomer workers, who were born between 1946 and 1964.
More than half of the millennials taking part admitted their emergency savings are insufficient to last them even 12 weeks. Among the millennials surveyed, 60% said they had less than three months of savings put aside for emergencies.
Almost three-quarters of millennial LGBTQ+ workers with bachelor’s degrees in the U.S. complained of being burdened by enormous debt from student loans. While the median owed is $40,000 per person, one out of five of those surveyed had more than $100,000 in student loan debt.
“This survey shows us that it is important for organizations like TD Bank to take steps in understanding the obstacles that LGBTQ+ communities face so we can better become advocates for cultivating inclusive environments in our workplaces, and throughout society,” Jonathan Lovitz, the advocate for LGBTQ+ youth and business advocate at TD Bank, said in a statement. “The freedom to be your fullest self that equality enables in each of us can empower success in every facet of our lives.”
Against the backdrop of the recent passage of the Equality Act by the House of Representatives, the survey also examined the issue of being out in the workplace, and the risks inherent in coming out. While millennials and Baby Boomers were just as likely to be out at work, only 33% of millennials said their bosses were LGBTQ+. More than 22% of millennial workers feared being out about their sexual orientation or gender identity to senior staff will hurt their careers and diminish their chances of advancement.
The survey also highlighted a growing generation gap in how the LGBTQ+ community self-identifies: 42% of the millennial workers surveyed said they either use gender-neutral pronouns like “they” or “them,” or have a partner or close friend who does, compared to only 26% for LGTBQ Gen X and Baby Boomer workers.
Corporations should take note of emerging priorities for the millennial generation’s job seekers: 80% those workers identifying as LGBTQ+ considered it very important for their workplace to have a sexual orientation non-discrimination policy, and 68% felt a “gender identity and expression non-discrimination policy” is most important in their workplace. Almost two-thirds of millennial workers surveyed looked at a future employer’s reputation for inclusivity before applying for a job.
Unfortunately, once hired, only 18% of LGBTQ+ millennials reported they have access to an employee resource group related to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity at work; of those who did. 57% of those surveyed were members.
The takeaway from all these numbers is that LGBTQ+ millennials worry more than other generations about money, their workplace and their ability to live an authentic life without extra pressures. Those pressures range from suffocating student loan debt to bosses who either don’t acknowledge or cannot relate to the significance of Pride in the lives of their employees. And the survey shows a widening gap in attitudes between older generations and LGBTQ+ millennials, a pattern that nearly every generation experiences but is perhaps felt more acutely by those who celebrate Pride this month.