Transgender Discrimination And The Law

Abstract

An emerging area of law is developing regarding sex/gender identity discrimination, also referred to as transgender discrimination, as distinguished from discrimination based on sexual orientation. A transgendered individual is defined as “a person who has a gender-identity disorder which is a persistent discomfort about one’s assigned sex or a sense of belonging to the other sex.’ While Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or it amendments do not provide protection from discrimination for individuals based on sexual orientation, transgender, or transvestites, there are a growing number of state, cities, and counties with transgender explicit non-discrimination laws. In addition to the above private employers, colleges and universities and collective bargaining agreements prohibit discrimination against transgendered people. While Title VII does not protect transgendered people, some federal courts have broadly interpreted Title VII’s prohibitation against sex discrimination as including transgendered people on the basis of the concept of “sex stereotyping” as a form of sex discrimination protected by Title VII. Additionally, the state courts of Massachusetts and New Jersey have held that transsexual people are protected under state disability laws. Human Resource Managers need to be sensitive to issues that can arise as a result of an employee making a sex change transition with respect to the following: 1) bathroom and dressing room usage; 2) dress codes; 3) identification and records changes; and (4) health benefits. Additionally, the transgendered employee, supervisory management and coworkers each have responsibilities to see that the transgendered transition is done respecting the rights of all concerned. As to the future, legal status of transgendered employees, transgender advocates should seek to change the existing laws; and if the existing law has sexual orientation protection, these laws should be written in such a way as to expressly include transgendered individuals. Additionally, transgender advocates should seek the voluntary cooperation of employers.

On the Margins of Marginalized

“…Transgender/GNC individuals (i.e., those whose gender identity does not match the sex that they were assigned at birth) are estimated to comprise approximately 0.3–5% of the adult population in the United States (Gates, 2011; Transgender Law and Policy Institute, n.d.; Trotter, 2010). While many identities fall under the “umbrella term” of transgender/GNC , including trans , gender variant , genderqueer , gender expansive , and nonbinary , we have chosen to use “transgender/GNC” to align with language used in the 2011 National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS).…”

Trans Feminine Sexual Violence Experiences: The Intersection of Transphobia and Misogyny

“…Current estimates indicate that transgender individuals comprise of approximately 0.3–5.0% of the U.S. adult population (Gates, 2011; Trotter, 2010). The term transgender refers to an individual whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth.…”

Effectively Facilitating Gender Transition in the Workplace

“…Some organizations that have Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) are also relying upon those professional resources to help transgender employees, as well as co-workers, navigate the transition and adjustment process at work (Taranowski 2008). The following topics are generally included in transition guidelines (Trotter 2010) and discussed in detail next including: co-worker concerns and education, restroom designation, dress codes, personal identification and records, and health insurance. In addition we touch on this issue from an international perspective.…”

“…While currently there is no federal protection under Title VII for transgender employees, some states and municipalities offer this group legal protection from discrimination (Trotter 2010). As of 2008, 12 states and the District of Columbia had extended discrimination protection to include gender identity or expression, and as of 2009, 19 additional states had introduced legislation that could extend protection based upon gender identity and/or expression (Transgender Law & Policy Institute 2008) (See Appendix A).…”

“…Progressive employment practices in this area typically go beyond a compliance approach and move toward an inclusive method that builds a supportive workplace climate for transgender employees (Cadrain 2009;Githens and Aragon 2009;Trotter 2010). For example, various employers not only have anti-discrimination policies that include gender identity even though they are not required to do so by federal, state, or local laws but also have a transition plan and support mechanisms in place.…”