Nananatiling Tahimik: Exploring the Lived Experience of Deaf Gay Workers in the Private Sector

The lived experience of Filipino Deaf LGBTQ+ workers in the private sector remains under- researched. The present study aimed to document and examine the experience of discrimination against Deaf gay workers at the intersection of their disability and gender. As an exploratory study, the study focused on three areas common to the literature: recruitment and selection, provisions of workplace accommodation, and workplace participation. Conducted between May to December 2020, in-depth semi-structured interviews with seven Deaf gay workers and key informant interviews with three experts revealed the role of patriarchy in the centrality of the able-bodied, heterosexual image in the workplace. Notable themes include the convergence of gender and disability stereotypes, the ableist and heteronormative workplace practices, and the unequal power relations between Deaf gay workers and their hearing heterosexual colleagues. The findings of this study revealed how various forms of inequalities often overlap and create interlocking forms of social injustice, and recommended the need for diversity mainstreaming as a step forward to gender mainstreaming to capture the lived realities of marginalized people and communities holistically. Further, the findings of this research were utilized to generate concrete recommendations to human resource and organizational development, development policy, and awareness-raising activities.