The move will put Kalskrona municipality in southeast Sweden at the forefront of the battle to end discrimination against sexual minorities in public services. 

 

The municipality plans to put all staff through an online education programme and expects them to discuss the issue “continually” in workplace meetings, the Blekinge Läns Tidning reported on Friday. 

 

“It is extremely important that everyone understands the values which affect HBTQ peoples’ lives,”  Börje Dovstad, a municipal councillor for the Liberal party, told the newspaper. “This is a way to show that this issue is important for us. We want to increase understanding and the chance for good treatment among employees.” 

 

The project, which will cost around 10,000 Swedish kronor ($1,100) is part of Kalskrona’s ambition to be an “open city”, where gay, bi and trans people can feel safe, he explained. 

 

Staff caring for the elderly and school health services have already been HBTQ-certified after undergoing a course run by the Swedish gay rights organisation RFSL. 

 

The municipality does not expect all staff to receive similar certification, Dovstad added. It is also not yet clear if politicians in the municipality will also be expected to do the course.