Proposed guidance released October 2, 2023 by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that protects LGBTQ+ individuals from harassment and discrimination in the workplace could come into direct conflict with spreading state and local policies on pronoun use and facility access for transgender school employees. The EEOC guidance would consider intentional and repeated misgendering, as well as denial of bathroom access or other facilities, as sex-based discrimination. Such harassment in and outside of the workplace could lead to a hostile environment in some circumstances, per the proposed directive. Thus, schools and other employers that bar transgender employees from bathrooms aligning with their gender identities or don’t recognize an employee’s preferred pronouns would be considered to be discriminatory and in violation of federal sex- and gender-based harassment protections.
Currently, at least nine states prohibit transgender people from using bathrooms and other facilities like locker rooms in K-12 schools.
To view the proposed EEOC guidance click here.
Source: K-12 Dive