Supporting Trans and Gender Diverse People in the Workplace
id: a non binary trans feminine person with blonde hair, wearing business clothes, on a busy city street near office blocks.
Click here to download Supporting TGD People in the Workplace as:
An audio file - a 1 page A4 print - a large A4 print/mobile version - a plaintext doc - a poster
Article By Kait Fenwick (they/them)
Redefine ‘professionalism’
For many TGD employees, finding corporate workwear that fits comfortably and enables the wearer to feel like their authentic self can be challenging.
Creating a culture whereby smart casual is the norm can alleviate stress for TGD folk. Within organisations whereby a uniform is a requirement, there are no legal barriers to allowing your staff to wear the uniform that best affirms their gender. All employees should be provided with the spectrum of uniform offerings during onboarding.
Adopt flexible working practices
Office environments can be fraught with anxiety for many TGD people. Navigating which bathroom to use as well as having to assert your name and pronoun can be exhausting. Enabling TGD people the opportunity to work from home shifts the focus from how a person outwardly presents themselves and back to the quality of their output.
Consider implementing leave entitlements for TGD employees
Whilst not all TGD people seek medical intervention, those that do are often faced with hefty out of pocket expenses. On top of those expenses, time is a factor.. The reality is that there are few TGD centred medical specialists in Australia, so the wait to see appropriate professionals can be lengthy. Once an appointment becomes available, there is often little flexibility offered to patients due to demand.
If gender-affirming surgery is something that is required, recovery periods can be extensive. Taking time off work can induce major anxiety for TGD employees as they are often already concerned with how they are received in the workplace. Specific leave entitlements for TGD employees enables individuals to focus on healing and recovery without being concerned about the perception of others.
Hold space for TGD employees to speak freely about where they are at (but don’t make them feel obligated)
But what does holding space mean?
Holding space refers to an individual making the conscious decision to let go of judgement, be present and provide unconditional support for the people around them.
Holding space is an example of allyship in practice.
Enable people to use their chosen name, not the one stated on legal documentation
Changing your name is a costly and lengthy process. While there are some instances whereby it may be best practice to capture an individual's legal name e.g payroll requirements, for the most part, there is no real reason not to allow people to use their chosen name. For example, within their email address and signature as well as across platforms like Slack, Workplace and Zoom.
It is also important to recognise that during gender transition, TGD employees may elect to change their name and/or pronouns throughout the process. Normalise the use of visible pronouns across all employee touch points within your organisation.
Mandate gender diversity training
There is a global shift in the conversation surrounding gender. Gender in Western frameworks was once considered binary. However, it is now widely understood that gender identity and expression is a spectrum. Addressing this ideological shift can be tricky, however, it can no longer be ignored by organisations. Investing in gender diversity training is not just for trans people. Hiring a TGD person to facilitate the sessions is imperative as their lived experience will ensure that the learning materials are multifaceted and centred on underrepresented gender identities.
Click here to download Supporting TGD People in the Workplace as:
An audio file - a 1 page A4 print - a large A4 print/mobile version - a plaintext doc - a poster