Janet Hendrick and Rich Meneghello's article "The Modern Workforce In Transition: Strategies for Employers Handling Transgender and Sexual Identity Issues" was featured in US News & World Report on November 2, 2015.
The national conversation about transgender individuals was forever changed over the course of only a few hours on June 1, 2015. That morning, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued "A Guide to Restroom Access for Transgender Workers," while the pop culture magazine Vanity Fair published the first picture of now-transformed Caitlyn Jenner. Unprepared employers were faced with the unenviable task of navigating a new and unfamiliar legal landscape at the very same moment that the underlying issue was taking a front seat in American popular culture.
This issue will not be fading from the spotlight anytime soon. A 2011 UCLA study estimated that approximately 700,000 adult Americans considered themselves transgender, while more recent studies estimated that number to be between 5 million and 12 million. The odds are high that any business that has not yet addressed a transgender situation soon will.
Fortunately, it is fairly simple for employers to prepare themselves for the inevitable transition that modern workforces will undergo as a result of these developments. Before examining best legal and human resources practices in this area, it is helpful to understand the contours of the current legal landscape.
In the article, Janet and Rich discuss the following topics:
- Legal Protections of Transgender and Transitioning Employees
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- U.S. Department of Justice
- U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
- Policies and Training
- Preparing a Transition Plan
To read the full article, please visit to US News & World Report.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
