Obama to sign executive order protecting job rights for gay employees Order would ban federal contractors from discriminating against employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity Suren Gambino 16 June 2014 After years of pressure from gay rights groups, President Obama is set to sign an executive order that would ban federal contractors from discriminating against employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, a White House official has told the Associated Press. The Obama administration has said it would prefer Congress to pass legislation that broadly extends workplace protections to all US employees. Such...