Some Florida residents might have heard about a controversial so-called “bathroom bill” in North Carolina that dealt with access to bathrooms for transgender people. The bill resulted in some events being pulled from the state. The transgender woman who filed a lawsuit regarding the bill that replaced that one in March has alleged that she faced discrimination in her job at a Sam’s Club, and the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund Inc. in New York has filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart on her behalf.
The lawsuit is asking for better training and unspecified damages. It alleges that coworkers used a number of slurs against the transgender woman. It also alleges that she faced sexual harassment from her boss as well as slurs. She says the company terminated her in retaliation for complaining about these issues, including a filing with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or because of her gender dysphoria. The company says she was fired because of performance.
The executive director of the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund says that it is not enough for a company to have policies in place against discrimination. Those policies must also be enforced.
People who believe they are facing discrimination at work because of their sexual orientation or gender identity might want to look into Boca Raton, Florida LGBT Workplace Discrimination Assistance. Examples of harassment or discrimination may include calling a transgender person by the wrong pronoun or using slurs against employees because of their sexual orientation. People might also face demotion or termination or be denied a promotion. Employees may want to consult an attorney about employee rights before going through the process of reporting at work. If there is retaliation or the workplace’s response is inadequate, an attorney may be of assistance.
Source: Reuters, “Transgender woman sues Wal-Mart over alleged bias in North Carolina“, Dec. 27, 2017
