Introduction <p>Sexual-orientation discrimination in police organizations remains underexamined as an everyday workplace issue in Southeast Asia. In Thailand, increased public visibility and recent legal reforms have expanded formal recognition of sexual diversity, but institutional equality may lag behind legal change.</p> Methods <p>This qualitative study combined document analysis with semi-structured, in-depth interviews conducted in 2024 with 31 key informants: 11 gay inquiry officers, 5 heterosexual inquiry officers, 5 supervisors, 5 subordinates, and 5 members of the public who had interacted with gay inquiry officers in investigative settings.</p> Results <p>Professional credibility remained closely associated with normative masculinity. Gay inquiry officers therefore managed visibility through selective disclosure and adjusted self-presentation according to rank, audience, and perceived risk. Four recurring forms of discrimination emerged: inappropriate pronoun use and feminizing forms of address, ridicule and sexualized workplace harassment, assignment of insignificant work, and perceived unfairness in promotion practices. Participants linked these experiences to shame and stress, restricted career advancement, and diminished self-confidence. The findings indicate partial and qualified acceptance rather than equal inclusion.</p> Conclusions <p>These experiences are best understood not merely as interpersonal difficulties, but as manifestations of gendered organizational inequality operating through informal hierarchy, workplace discretion, identity regulation, and unequal recognition.</p> Policy Implications <p>Police reform in Thailand and comparable Southeast Asian contexts requires explicit anti-discrimination protections, confidential complaint mechanisms, transparent safeguards in promotion and task allocation, and training that addresses everyday organizational culture as well as formal policy.</p>