"Today, I go to work as myself"

11. Jul 2024

6 min

It means a lot to Daniel Hansen that Nordea employees are offered to choose a lanyard in rainbow colors. "Then I have no doubt that I can be open about myself," he says. Photo: Mathias Eis

"For many years, I’ve adjusted to the environment, but, today, I go to work as myself," states Daniel Hansen.

The 44-year-old investment and pension specialist at Nordea has agreed to talk about the development he has experienced as gay in terms of going to work and being able to be open about himself and his private life in the financial sector.
Because things have changed. And it's for the better, proclaims Daniel Hansen.

"Don't flaunt it"

He himself had a bad experience the first time he told his manager about his male friend in the early 2000s. He had already come out to family and friends, but he also wanted to be honest at work.

"It can be scary enough to do this to people you spend 37 hours a week with. But that wasn’t actually a problem. It wasn’t until I had to tell my manager that it became a problem," reveals Daniel Hansen and explains that, initially, the manager took it well.

"She said, 'I'm fine with that. Just don't flaunt it. Especially not around customers, as some might find it offensive’,” he says.

This was not the reaction Daniel Hansen had expected. And it didn’t make it easier for him to navigate either. On the contrary:

"Saying that, she's in a work context putting me back in the closet for many years. In fact, to such an extent that when I am assisting a customer today, I don't know how to talk about my life if we touch upon that topic."

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"I look like any other banker in a suit. And perhaps some people might see this person as fitting into a certain mould. They think that I have a wife, three children and a house in Solrød."

- Daniel Hansen, Investment and Pension Specialist at Nordea

Like coming out again and again

This means, for example, that he becomes hesitant when the conversation concerns his partner or spouse, and he answers without specifying the gender.

That's why meeting new customers feels like coming out of the closet for him every day.

"I look like any other banker in a suit. And perhaps some people might see this person as fitting into a certain mould. They think that I have a wife, three children and a house in Solrød."

He doesn't necessarily correct a customer, but if a colleague makes a reference to his wife, he usually responds with a sentence mentioning his husband.

Because even though he's not married to his boyfriend Mark, he consistently refers to him as "my husband".

"Because then there are no questions. A partner does not reveal the gender," explains Daniel Hansen.

The first time Daniel Hansen came out to a manager, she asked him not to flaunt it in the presence of customers. He’s still affected by this statement today. Photo: Mathias Eis

Appreciates his workplace

To Daniel Hansen, it means a lot to be able to be true to himself towards his colleagues. And he emphasises that a lot has happened in the more than 20 years that have passed since he first came out on the job.

"It's a completely different matter to come out in the financial sector today," he says, adding:
"It's great that we've reached a stage where you don't necessarily have to adapt to the environment when you go to work, but you can be yourself."

This is essential to Daniel Hansen and one of the reasons why he works at Nordea. He greatly appreciates the way the bank works with diversity and inclusion.

"I left Nordea for a short period. But the announced concept that there is an accommodating atmosphere ended up pulling me back again," says Daniel Hansen.

And he notices it on a daily basis. As an example, he emphasises that he knows where to go if he experiences problems.

"The bank has a D&I function in HR that takes care of these things," he says and explains that he is also part of Nordea's employer resource group for LGBTQ+. And to him, it seems that they are consulted by Management. As an example, he grabs the rainbow-colored lanyard around his neck.

"They may, for instance, ask why it's important that employees may decide to choose a lanyard in rainbow colors. All I can say is that it means a lot to me when I meet colleagues who wear it. Then I have no doubt that I can be open about myself," he says.

(Artiklen fortsætter efter boksen)

"I can be myself, and so can my Nordea colleagues in Poland."

- Daniel Hansen, Investment and Pension Specialist at Nordea

Carl and his family celebrate diversity

When PR Consultant at Møns Bank Carl Henrik Paulsen and his family join Copenhagen Pride, they will be singing along to "It's Raining Men". They want to celebrate the right to be who you are and encourage others to join in.

Deteriorating rights

Daniel Hansen sees the rainbow colors appearing in more and more places. He points behind the counter of the café where we are sitting. Here, small rainbow flags hang side by side in a long banner above the bar.

"It's become so natural here that you hardly notice them," says Daniel Hansen, while emphasising that this doesn't mean you should remove them or stop talking about the rights of LGBTQ+ people.

"For me, it's important to talk about because I see that, out there in the world, many of the rights we have fought for are about to be rolled back," he says, pointing out that several EU countries have recently reversed rights.

This includes Hungary, where schools and media aren’t permitted to educate children and young people about gay people, bisexuals and transgenders, and Poland, which has earned the title of the worst country in Europe for LGBT rights for the fifth year running.
This makes Daniel Hansen emphasise once again how happy he is to work in a place that actively supports the right to go to work and be yourself.

"I can be myself, and so can my Nordea colleagues in Poland." It's not necessarily as easy. But when they're inside the four walls of the Nordea building, that's how it is," he says.

No more difficult than in other industries

If you ask the 44-year-old Nordea employee, being gay in the financial sector is no more difficult than in many other industries. But of course, it differs how pronounced it is and how much focus it gets.
"There's a joke among gay people that if you don't know at least one hairdresser or someone who works in aviation, you're not gay. My husband works in aviation and can easily name a number of gay colleagues. It's not the same for me," he says.

That's why he keeps meeting people at work who assume he has a wife and children. But you shouldn't be embarrassed if you've asked him about his wife and get an answer about his husband, Daniel Hansen underlines.

"A lot of people apologise, but there is no need to at all," he says and instead offers a piece of advice that he always follows himself.

"Ask about someone’s partner instead of saying husband or wife. Because that makes people answer the way they want to. These are little things that we need to be smarter about 365 days a year and not just for a period of time," concludes Daniel Hansen.