YORK Pride is launching a survey to get a picture of how comfortable and supported gay people feel when they go to work.

The gay rights organisation is asking local lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people to report their experiences in the workplace in an anonymous online survey as it prepares to campaign on the issue during 2014.

Chair Greg Stephenson said that working with its main sponsor, mutual healthcare provider Benenden Health, York Pride would be seeking to make as much difference as it could for LGBT people.

“We intend to set out a number of challenges for employers, schools and housing providers in and around York that seek to improve life here for our community,” he said. “But before setting aims for local employers to make the workplace more supportive, York Pride need to know about the experiences of LGBT people in this part of the world.”

He said York Pride wanted to know whether employers were making efforts to ensure their employees could be “out” and were not discriminated against.

The challenges to York and North Yorkshire employers would be announced at a high-profile launch event at York Hilton this month, he said. Mr Stephenson revealed that York Pride and Benenden Health had enlisted Stonewall, the campaigning organisation for lesbians and gay men, as a specialist advisor that would work with employers during 2014 to improve workplace conditions for LGBT people.

The survey is at www.surveymonkey.com/s/JZKL7TT, with more information at www.yorkpride.org.uk