Our AI writing assistant, WriteUp, can assist you in easily writing any text. Click here to experience its capabilities.

Do trans employees feel seen and safe? How to audit your HR policies and benefits

View Original View Raw

Summary

This article discusses the way in which employers can better support transgender and nonbinary employees in the workplace. It highlights the fact that transgender adults are often unemployed and face discrimination, and suggests steps employers can take to make the workplace more inclusive. These steps include making HR forms more inclusive, providing gender-neutral bathroom facilities, and investing in inclusive healthcare offerings for trans employees. Additionally, employers should facilitate conversations about current events, and empower transgender and nonbinary employees to speak up about their experiences. Ultimately, the article emphasizes that meaningful policy change can only come from an inclusive culture.

Q&As

What are the current statistics of trans and nonbinary people in the US?
According to a 2021 report from management consulting company McKinsey, there are more than two million transgender people in the United States and 1.2 million people who identify as nonbinary.

What are the difficulties faced by transgender employees in the workplace?
Transgender adults are twice as likely to be unemployed; for those who do work, more than half say they are not comfortable being out at work. Cisgender employees were found to make 32% more than transgender employees, even when education levels matched.

What policies can employers implement to better support transgender employees?
Employers could begin by making the office as gender neutral as possible, using inclusive language and including "nonbinary" when asking employees to disclose their gender, and providing gender-neutral bathroom facilities. Having Pride Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) is helpful, but it's not where efforts should end. Employers should also consider investing in inclusive healthcare offerings or reallocating budget for trans employees in certain states.

How can employers ensure an inclusive culture in the workplace?
Employers should be facilitating conversations at work around current events and empowering their trans folks to speak up about what they may be experiencing both at work and at home.

What initiatives can employers take to show their support for transgender rights?
Employers can celebrate holidays such as Transgender Awareness Month and National Coming Out Day, and invest in inclusive healthcare offerings or reallocate budget for trans employees in certain states.

AI Comments

👍 This article by Paola Peralta was incredibly insightful and informative on the current situation of trans employees in the workplace and how employers can better support them. It is great to see companies taking proactive steps to ensure trans and nonbinary employees feel safe and seen in the workplace.

👎 This article by Paola Peralta was brief and did not go into enough depth on the issues of trans employees in the workplace. It also did not provide any concrete steps that employers can take to support and protect their trans employees.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about how employers can better support their trans employees by auditing their HR policies and benefits, and implementing inclusive practices that ensure trans employees feel safe and respected. It also talks about how trans employees are twice as likely to be unemployed and are making 32% less than their cisgender counterparts.

Friend: Wow, that's really concerning. It's important that employers take steps to ensure trans employees feel seen and safe in the workplace. What kinds of steps should they be taking?

Me: The article suggests that employers should make their office more gender-neutral, like having inclusive language in forms and providing gender-neutral bathrooms. They should also celebrate holidays like Transgender Awareness Month and National Coming Out Day, provide inclusive healthcare options, and create trans-inclusive or trans-specific employee resource groups. Finally, they should facilitate conversations around current events and empower their trans employees to speak up about their experiences.

Action items

Audit your HR policies and benefits to ensure they are inclusive of transgender and nonbinary employees.
Create gender-neutral bathroom facilities and forms that use inclusive language.
Invest in inclusive healthcare offerings, celebrate holidays such as Transgender Awareness Month and National Coming Out Day, and provide reallocation bonuses for trans employees in certain states.

Technical terms

Trans: Short for transgender, an umbrella term for people whose gender identity or expression is different from their sex assigned at birth.
Nonbinary: A term used to describe gender identities that are not exclusively male or female.
Cisgender: A term used to describe people whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.
LGBTQ: An acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer.
McKinsey: A management consulting company.
ERGs: Employee Resource Groups, which are voluntary, employee-led groups that foster a sense of community and provide support for members of a particular group.
Hormone Replacement Therapy: A medical treatment that involves taking hormones to reduce the symptoms of a medical condition.
National Coming Out Day: An annual event celebrated on October 11th to raise awareness of the LGBTQ+ community and to support those who are coming out.