Employees in Minnesota and workplaces all around the country face many of the same opportunities and hardships. Even though the circumstances surrounding individual cases of workplace discrimination may be unique, many other workers often encounter similar forms of mistreatment. That’s why the outcome of some cases can have such a profound impact on others. The direct results of one such landmark ruling are beginning to be seen, as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces policies to safeguard the rights of transgender employees.
The case that started it all involved a transgender woman who was denied a job position in the late stages of the hiring process after her prospective employer learned she would not be reporting to the job as a man, as originally anticipated. The employer was ultimately found to have committed gender discrimination against the transgender worker.
Since then, the EEOC decided that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act recognizes transgender workers, officially offering them protection under the law from sex discrimination and harassment. And it is because of that important finding that the federal agency has begun investigating claims of transgender discrimination in earnest.
In fact, the EEOC just recently conducted a full-scale investigation over claims of sex discrimination against a transgender employee in Maryland. The first official inquiry of its kind, the investigation resulted in the EEOC ruling in favor of the plaintiff. According to the EEOC, the employer in question failed to address concerns of harassment against the plaintiff, therefore denying her of her employee rights.
Now that a precedence has been set for combatting gender discrimination against transgender employees, more workers in Minnesota and elsewhere can exercise their rights.
Source: advocate.com, “Trans Women Win Employment Discrimination Suits Using Civil Rights Act,” Sunnivie Brydum, July 15, 2013