Transgender Workplace Diversity

Title IX and Transgender Students

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 12:29:00 +0000

I've been invited this weekend to a symposium sponsored by the University of Wisconsin Law School's Journal of Law, Gender and Society, on the subject of Transcending Gender Lines: Title IX and Transgender Rights. I thought I'd take a break from my recent series on filing employment discrimination complaints to talk about Title IX and transgender students.

There are a lot of other fabulous people coming, and the full line up is here.

My paper is entitled "Protecting Transgender Students: Application of Title IX to Gender Identity or Expression and the Constitutional Right to Gender Autonomy." The bottom line of this paper? If you're filing a case to protect transgender students' rights to proper forms of address, dress codes, facilities usage and protection from invasive questioning, then you can't count on Title IX alone. You should also file a claim under the U.S. Constitution for the right to gender autonomy.

You may remember me banging on about the "right to gender autonomy," in a post right here on The Bilerico Project, some years ago when I was writing a law review article on it. That article eventually was published in the Touro Journal of Race, Gender and Ethnicity. Anyway, after the jump is my brief take on the application of this constitutional right to Title IX and transgender students. There are a few typos -- it's just a conference draft -- but look for a much expanded and polished version this coming Fall in the Wisconsin Journal of Law, Gender and Society.

Reposted from Bilerico.com. Click here to read more...

EEOC File 13: Waiting for Godot

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 17:59:00 +0000

A country road. A tree.

Evening.
Estragon, sitting on a low mound, is trying to take off his boot. He pulls at it with both hands, panting.
He gives up, exhausted, rests, tries again.
As before.

Enter Vladimir.

ESTRAGON:
(giving up again). Nothing to be done.

VLADIMIR:
(advancing with short, stiff strides, legs wide apart). I'm beginning to come round to that opinion. All my life I've tried to put it from me, saying Vladimir, be reasonable, you haven't yet tried everything. And I resumed the struggle.

Thus begins Samuel Beckett's classic, Waiting For Godot, which reminds me a lot of filing a complaint with the EEOC. Cross-posted from Bilerico.com - Click here to read more...

Where to File an Employment Discrimination Lawsuit

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 18:18:00 +0000

When you experience discrimination at work, first stop should be HR, though you have to be careful about how you approach it.

But what happens if HR doesn't solve the problem after a reasonable period of time? Your next stop is an employment discrimination lawsuit. My best advice for that is to find a lawyer who has experience in the area, and is going to charge you a fee you can afford, or, better yet, will take the case on a contingency, meaning no legal fee unless an award is given. You should keep in mind that a contingency fee is a business arrangement. That means that the lawyer who accepts a case under such an arrangement is betting that there will be an award, and that it will be enough to cover the time and office expenses spent on the case. This lawyer is generally not on a crusade for justice, except to the extent that it means getting you some compensation.

It is a good idea to contact legal organizations, like Lambda Legal, the ACLU, the Transgender Law Center, or the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund, to see if they are interested in the case. Their resources are limited, however, so they only take on cases that have a good chance of success and fit within certain legal priorities that the organization considers most important for the community. They can take on only a fraction of the cases flooding into their offices. Even they, however, won't necessarily want to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Some cases are just better off being settled, because litigation is always a roll of the dice.

Cross-posted from Bilerico.com. Click here to read more...

Job Discrimination Complaint Pitfalls & Traps

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 10:53:00 +0000

You have had just about enough of this nonsense. Your work environment is positively hostile because of your sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression or whatnot. You've been the subject of jokes, of harassing comments, of prank phone calls, weird things put in your desk or locker, of uncomfortable touching or even punching, threats --veiled or not so veiled -- of physical harm and loss of your job. You have tried to ignore this, hoping that showing you're not rattled and taking the higher ground will make this go away.

Should you file a complaint with HR? Well, you could, but then there is what happened to Robert Jordan.

"When the news broke in October 2002 that police in Montgomery County, Maryland, had captured two black men suspected of being the snipers who had randomly shot 13 individuals, killing 10, in separate incidents over a period of weeks in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, an IBM employee watching the news on television in one of IBM's Montgomery County offices exclaimed, 'They should put those two black monkeys in a cage with a bunch of black apes and let the apes fuck them.' A fellow employee, Robert Jordan, who is black, was in the room at the time and heard the exclamation. Jordan was offended and discussed the incident with two other coworkers, who told him that the employee had made similar comments before. Jordan then reported the incident to management. A month later Jordan was fired, purportedly because he was 'disruptive,' his position 'had come to an end,' and management personnel 'don't like you and you don't like them.'" Jordan v. Alternative Resources, et al., 458 F.3d 332 (4th Cir. 2006) (expletives undeleted).

He lost his case.

Cross-posted from Bilerico.com. Click here to read more...

The Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Blues

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 16:36:00 +0000

Let's say that your troglodyte co-workers call you "faggot" or "Ms. Thing" or "he" when you're a "she" or vice versa, or make some other neanderthal comments. And let's say you are not going to take that kind of treatment, and you want to enforce your rights to be treated with dignity under the law. What do you do?

Federal law prohibits employment discrimination based on sex, which has been interpreted to mean gender identity or expression, as in transgender identity, or non-standard gender, as in gay stereotyping. If you work for a public employer, sexual orientation is covered by some federal courts under the U.S. Constitution. A number of state and city laws also prohibit employment discrimination on these bases. Most large companies also don't allow that kind of behavior and say so in their policies. But what does it mean to try to enforce these rights?

I've recently reactivated my law licenses in New York and New Jersey, and undertaken a number of lawsuits for people who have requested my assistance as a lawyer. So I'm seeing a whole different side to things, beyond the academic theories I've been spending time with for the past decade. It's a jungle out there.

Cross-posted from Bilerico.com: Click Here To Read More

Trans Activism 2013-style

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 14:00:00 +0000

It's been a long time since my last blog, and I am anxious about getting back in the saddle. A lot has changed since I last blogged in September. At that time, the most important thing was getting pro-equality candidates elected, and we did that. The re-election of President Obama was the best thing for equality, as was the election of our largest cadre of LGBT Members of the House of Representatives, including my own Sean Patrick Maloney in NY-18 (please like his Facebook page!), and the election of Senator Tammy Baldwin.

But it's not about legislation right now. The government agencies and the courts are where it's at now. I have moved my activism to those arenas. And it's time to start blogging again.

It's been busy, but lately, blogging has been on my mind. It's not enough to go into our various little cubby holes and do our work. It's important to tell each other what we're up to, providing encouragement to keep going in the face of life's obstacles, and also learning something about what the next challenges are, and where the action is likely to be. For example, ENDA is so 2000s. Yes, it will get passed at some point, and yes, we should still continue to ask for it. But I'm not putting all my eggs in that basket right now, because the House is too dominated by conservatives to make it worthwhile. Same thing with GENDA in New York State.

Cross-posted from Bilerico.com. Click here to read more

Black respondents in Nat'l Transgender Discrimination Survey Fared Far Worse

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 12:40:00 +0000

Windy City Times - Injustice at Every Turn: Black respondents in Nat'l Transgender Discrimination Survey - 212: Black transgender and gender non-conforming people face some of the highest levels of discrimination of all transgender people according to a new analysis released today, Injustice at Every Turn: A Look at Black Respondents in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey.

This report by the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) is a supplement to the groundbreaking national study, Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, which was published in February and revealed widespread discrimination experienced by transgender and gender non-conforming people across the board.

Discrimination was pervasive for the entire sample, but anti-transgender bias coupled with structural racism meant that transgender people of color experienced particularly devastating levels of discrimination, with Black respondents often faring worse than all others.

Springfield commissioners pass anti-discrimination ordinance - Springfield Sun - Montgomery News

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 12:38:00 +0000

Springfield commissioners pass anti-discrimination ordinance - Springfield Sun - Montgomery News: After nearly a year of discussion, the Springfield, Pennsylvania, Township Board of Commissioners voted 4-2 Wednesday to pass an anti-discrimination ordinance in front of a full room of mostly supportive community members.

Ill. Trans Woman Wins Discrimination Suit

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:34:00 +0000

Ill. Trans Woman Wins Discrimination Suit | Law | The Advocate: In what may be the first award to a transgender person under the Illinois Human Rights Act, a taxi company has been ordered to pay more than $100,000 for discrimination against a transgender employee.

The discriminatory conduct here was particularly egregious, so the large award is not surprising.

Transgender Programming at the Out & Equal Workplace Summit in Dallas, TX

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:16:00 +0000

The Out & Equal Workplace Summit in Dallas, TX in October is having some excellent programming on trans issues, including sessions on the business case and design/implementation of transgender benefits, the role of workplace equality in the lives of trans workers, transition guideline development, including the T in ERGs, Boeing's approach to the intersection of work and situation, the business case for trans-inclusive health benefits, and the status of trans-inclusive healthcare in the Corporate Equality Index.

Cali. Senate Passes Gender Identity Protections

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:51:00 +0000

While existing California law had long been interpreted to protect trans citizens, the law has now been amended to provide explicit protections.

Cali. Senate Passes Gender Identity Protections | Care2 Causes: The California Senate this week passed a bill that would strengthen the state’s existing nondiscrimination laws to explicitly protect trans citizens.

The legislation, known as the Gender Nondiscrimination Act (AB 887), passed in a vote of 25-13. The state Assembly passed the legislation in May by 54-24.

Iowa fires 3 civil rights investigators for discriminatory emails

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 11:25:00 +0000

It is important to understand that civil rights agencies, nor, for that matter, judges, do not always understand or respect civil rights and civil rights law. Here is another story that it is wise to keep in mind.

APNewsBreak: Iowa fires 3 investigators for emails - Houston Chronicle: Three Iowa civil rights investigators have been fired after sending hundreds of gossipy emails calling co-workers derogatory nicknames like "Psycho," ''Monster," and "Roid Rage," and forwarding pictures that made fun of fat people, Wal-Mart customers and others, according to public records and interviews.

Iowa Administrative Judge James Timberland upheld their termination from the agency, noting that they traded and received emails "that made fun of and/or ridiculed obese people, gay, transgendered and/or transvestite people, elderly people, Walmart customers, African-American men, white high school students, white men, and white people generally."

Interpretation of Gender -- Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 11:10:00 +0000

8-22-11: Our Interpretation of Gender � Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast: In light of the Governor's vow to work on transgender non-discrimination legislation, and to help us understand our notions of gender, Sheilah speaks with Paz Galupo, Professor of Psychology and Director of LGBT Studies at Towson University.

You can also listen to a conversation we had this past spring with transgender advocate Sandy Rawls, about the frequency with which violence occurs in the transgender community. Sandy is the president and founder of Trans-United, an organization devoted to providing help and support to the transgender community.

And for an in-depth look at the obstacles members of the transgender community face in daily life, this 2007 piece called “In Between Days” from Baltimore’s City Paper is definitely worth a read.

'Trans'-cending stereotypes: Tackling transgender bias in the workplace - Business Management Daily

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 11:09:00 +0000

Here is an article in Business Management Daily from an employer's perspective about addressing transgender issues in the workplace. It's generally favorable, but I must disagree with the statement that federal courts are reluctant to extend protection to transgender employees. In fact, more than a dozen federal district courts have ruled in favor of transgender employees, and the 6th Circuit federal Court of Appeals, which includes the states of Kenutcky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee, has also ruled that transgender people are entitled to protection.

'Trans'-cending stereotypes: Tackling transgender bias in the workplace - Business Management Daily: You can’t ignore transgender issues. And in New Jersey, you can’t ignore discriminatory behavior and harassment against transgender employees. That would be illegal under the NJLAD, and could result in costly litigation.

To minimize the possibility of discrimination against transgender employees in your workplace, follow these tips:

Train managers and employees to be sensitive and understanding toward transgender employees.
Allow transgender employees to express their preferred gender identity in the workplace.
Treat leaves of absence for sexual reassignment procedures the same as other scheduled medical procedures.

Transgender challenges

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 17:09:00 +0000

An interesting, though short article today in the Windsor Star out of Ontario.

Transgender challenges: IT specialist Brad Sensabaugh can't help but wonder how some of his colleagues at the TD Bank Group in London, Ont., will react when the story of his private life hits the media spotlight.

That he is anything more than the bright, tech-savvy 33-year-old man they've come to know and respect since he joined the bank has likely never crossed their minds.

The article is generally favorable for trans people, but also broaches the limits of tolerance as it discusses the case of a transsexual man who is transitioning while working at a womens' domestic violence shelter, which is reminiscent of the Nixon case that occurred in Canada a while back.

HR Magazine - Diversity: interview with Fiona Cannon, director of diversity and inclusion at Lloyds Banking Group

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 10:48:00 +0000

UK-based Lloyds Banking Group talks diversity:

HR Magazine - Diversity: interview with Fiona Cannon, director of diversity and inclusion at Lloyds Banking Group: "In other words, LBG has twigged to the amount of money that comes into the bank from diverse customer bases - and for them to wish to bank with Lloyds, customers need to engage with staff they can empathise with.

'Half our customers are women,' Cannon explains. 'Three million of our customers have a disability. The disabled market is worth �80 billion a year to the economy and this is set to grow with an ageing population.'

The same is true for ethnic minority customers - worth a potential estimated �103 billion annually to the country, according to Cannon - as well as the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) market, thought to be worth �70 billion."

FAQ: The Employment Non-Discrimination Act

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 10:46:00 +0000

Another good article from the Center For American Progress:

FAQ: The Employment Non-Discrimination Act: "FAQ: The Employment Non-Discrimination Act
What You Need to Know"

Gay and Transgender Discrimination Outside the Workplace

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 10:45:00 +0000

From the Center For American Progress, a good review of the issues:

Gay and Transgender Discrimination Outside the Workplace: "Gay and Transgender Discrimination Outside the Workplace
Why We Need Protections in Housing, Health Care, and Public Accommodations"

Alaska sued in transgender driver's license case - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 12:20:00 +0000

Alaska sued in transgender driver's license case - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee: "The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the state of Alaska on behalf of a transgender woman, alleging that it denied her a driver's license listing her gender as female unless she provided proof that she'd undergone a sex change operation.

The lawsuit, which ACLU said was filed in state court in Anchorage Monday, states that denying the woman a license that accurately reflects her gender identity because she hasn't undergone surgery is unconstitutional."

Working While Transgender: An Occupational Hazard?

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 15:25:00 +0000

A well-written article on Huffington Post:

Ilene H. Lang: Working While Transgender: An Occupational Hazard?

A Mother’s Transition Story: Part 1: The Beginning - Ferndale, MI Patch

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 11:34:00 +0000

Editor's note: The author and her son are using pseudonyms for this article. This is not due to any sense of shame on their parts. It is done to protect Kyle, who does not want his employment jeopardized. Michigan law does not protect transgender employees.

A Mother’s Transition Story: Part 1: The Beginning - Ferndale, MI Patch: "Editor's note: The author and her son are using pseudonyms for this article. This is not due to any sense of shame on their parts. It is done to protect Kyle, who does not want his employment jeopardized. Michigan law does not protect transgender employees."

Bishop Gene Robinson on HuffPo: Employees Should Be Judged on Performance, Not Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 11:33:00 +0000

Bishop Robinson is the Ninth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire and a visiting Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, Washington, D.C.

Bishop Gene Robinson: Employees Should Be Judged on Performance, Not Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity: "She is surrounded by a work environment that is largely hostile to the fact that she once lived her life as a man but now finds a fulfilling life as the woman she was created to be. She lives in fear--not only of the violence so prevalent against transgender people (the murder rate for transgender people is astronomically high), but also the constant threat of losing her job because of her gender"

Denied Gender Change at DMV: Government Workers Need More Education | SouthFloridaGayNews.com

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:19:00 +0000

Changing government ID can be very difficult, even when the law is in your favor, and government officials often feel free to give vent to prejudice.

Denied Gender Change at DMV: Government Workers Need More Education | SouthFloridaGayNews.com: "I returned to the Florida DMV to have my gender marker changed and after standing in line for 3 hours to my amazement I was denied. I was informed that only a supervisor could change the gender marker on my license and it seemed the supervisor was not at work that day.

I was flabbergasted because I had followed all of the instructions word for word yet I was turned away and refused."

She never did succeed in having her ID changed.

Career Stopped Because of Employment Discrimination

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:05:00 +0000

Nancy Nangeroni, a highly regarded trans advocate, tells her story, one that is, unfortunately, all too common:

Bay Windows - New England's largest GLBT newspaper: "My successes included a patented design that gave Bose a significant advantage over competitors; the first successful electronic telephone ringer transducer; and a PC plug-in card that became a telephony industry standard for 10 years. As you probably know, 10 years is a long time in the PC industry."

U.S. Office of Personnel Management Issues Guidance on Transgender Employees | Just Out

noreply@blogger.com (Dr. Jillian T. Weiss) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 16:01:00 +0000

The federal government has been working on these guidelines for a while. I am glad to see that these are finally out.

U.S. Office of Personnel Management Issues Guidance on Transgender Employees | Just Out: "Federal agencies can no longer use ignorance as an excuse when it comes to the (mis)treatment of transgender employees. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management outlined in a Friday memo policies and concepts relating to the employment of transgender people as well as guidelines for when an employee transitions in the workplace."