Monday, May 1, 2006

Plug: June Conference on Contemporary Issues and Workplace Best Practices

I reported in a previous post on a conference coming up June 1-3 in Boston at which issues of gender identity in the workplace will be the main focus. I think it appropos to mention it again because I have been asked to present at the conference.

My presentation will be on "Transgender Workplace Policy Formulation for HR and Diversity Professionals." I will discuss policy tools for organizational responses to gender transition, beyond simple addition of "gender identity and expression" to EEO policies.

Gender transition invokes foreseeable issues, and HR and Diversity professionals in-the-know should be aware of five major policy tools that address these issues. These include

  • Notification and mediation processes
  • Step-by-step guidelines for accountable units
  • Training of HR personnel in gender transition processes and guidelines
  • Clear facilities usage criteria
  • Communication sessions for frequent workplace contacts

There are many ways in which these may be structured, and there are many pitfalls. An assessment of organizational culture is important to configuring these effectively for your organization. The presentation will focus on the three most common policy structures: post-modernist, traditionalist, and middle-of-the-road.

I hope to see you HR and Diversity professionals there. If you're not an HR or Diversity professional, send this to your favorite HR/Diversity person by clicking on the little email icon to the right of the word "comments" below! (It's invisible for some reason, but it's there.)