Gay

A supermajority of Grindr employees have launched a campaign to form a union, announcing the plan via the Communication Workers of America (CWA) to collectively fight for layoff protections, preserve current benefits, add cost of living pay raises, and strengthen LGBTQ+ rights in the workplace, among other demands.

According to Grindr United’s press release announcing its formation, about 100 eligible members from departments across the company including cloud engineering, customer experience, design, engineering, IT, marketing, privacy, product and quality assurance signed representation cards at Grindr.

Employees are asking Grindr management to recognize their union, but if they refuse, employees will petition the National Labor Relations Board to hold an election, according to The Los Angeles Times. (U.S. Labor law allows companies to negotiate and recognize a union once they have signed up a majority of employees (which Grindr United has), or to hold out for a government-run election.)

The former chief privacy officer at Grindr says the company fired him after he raised concerns about privacy violations on the platform, according to the lawsuit he filed in a state court in Los Angeles.

Ron De Jesus claimed in the lawsuit that the LGBTQ+ company willfully ignored his concerns about its “alarming” privacy practices concerning personal user data, according to Bloomberg Law, including retaining sensitive data like nude photos without the consent or knowledge of the user. The document alleges the company also collected the HIV status of users, even after they deleted their accounts.

"In other words, deleted users' private communications, including naked photos and other highly sensitive content, such as HIV status are not only still stored in Grindr's systems, but also its vendor systems, and potentially retrievable by any employee of Grindr, or its third-party support vendor, through a backdoor to Grindr's application," De Jesus claimed in the lawsuit, according to Business Insider.

Dating app Bumble has launched Healthy Queer Dating Guide for its users to promote kindness and encourage an inclusive dating experience on the app.

The Guide covers a range of relevant topics, including how to start an online conversation with someone new when you are feeling nervous, and how to set clear boundaries when you connect. According to Hindustan Times, the Guide also offers advice for how to communicate that a match has misgendered you in the early stages of dating.

First date advice (and navigating to a second date), kindness in conversations, and how to approach dating when you prioritize your own emotional needs are included among other topics, according to Indulge Express. The Guide also offers important advice on how to deal with rejection, something every dater experiences.

Image: Her

Dating app HER has launched “Thirst Mode,” a new feature in time for Pride Month.

Thirst Mode offers HER users 60 minutes per day of unlimited likes, the ability to see who has liked them, and a chance to move their profiles to the top of the heap for more visibility, according to Cosmopolitan. This feature is intended to showcase that the dating app is prioritizing hookups as well as relationships, especially during Pride. The company found in a recent survey that 40 percent of its users were hoping to hook up with a friend this month.

HER was launched primarily for the lesbian singles community, but has now expanded to include “FLINTAS” (female, lesbian, intersex, trans, and agender singles).

The feature will be free during Pride month for all users, according to Cosmopolitan. After that, it will be a premium feature that costs $5.99 per month for those willing to pay.

Dating app BLK, a dating and lifestyle app for the black community, has launched a series of profile stickers in time for Pride Month to celebrate the LGBTQIA2S+ community. In addition, the company launched the #BLKVoices social media campaign to educate and dispel misconceptions surrounding the letters of the spectrum.

The profile stickers were designed by Brooklyn-based artist Thaddeus Coates, who goes by the name Hippy Potter, and are available exclusively for BLK users, according to news website Atlanta Daily World. Each sticker represents a letter from the LGBTQIA2S+ spectrum, and users can add them to their profiles to display their identities and spark conversation. The intention behind this offering is not only to connect people romantically, but also to foster engagement among users who might not know what certain letters stand for.

The idea came when BLK conducted a survey among its users and found that 40 percent of LGBTQIA2S+ individuals were unfamiliar with the meaning of every letter in the spectrum, according to Atlanta Daily World. Since so many members within the queer community on the platform were uncertain, the company wanted to raise awareness and dispel false assumptions among all users.

Tinder has added new profile stickers to celebrate Pride month, and as young LGBTQIA+ daters become the fastest-growing user base on its platform.

Young users can now add “My First Pride” as a sticker to help them connect with others attending Pride-related events, according to The Advocate. “Came Out Online” is another sticker specifically honoring younger Tinder users who first came out on a dating app or social media platform.

In fact, Tinder’s new Future of Dating Report found that 54 percent of LGBTQIA+ singles between the ages of 18 and 25 come out on dating apps first, and to friends and family later. The study also found that young singles say their sexual identity and gender identity have become more fluid over the past three years.