More trans people feel they need to hide their status at work

As many as 65% of trans employees felt they’ve had to hide their trans status at work compared to 52% five years ago, with discrimination being a big issue.

The survey of over 400 trans employees from Totaljobs in collaboration with YouGov, found that 56% of trans employees think it’s harder for them to find employment because of who they are.

Only 56% of trans people have felt comfortable sharing their status with colleagues and of those who have, 51% said their colleagues responded positively to them coming out, compared with 50% in 2016.

Only 5% saw their colleagues react negatively to them coming out, down from 10% in 2016.

Totaljobs’ CEO, Jon Wilson, commented, “Having a situation where any employee feels that they have to hide who they are in the workplace, or even decide to leave a role as a consequence of not feeling accepted, is simply wrong. To hear that the number of trans people experiencing this has increased since our last report in 2016, is deeply concerning. As employers, we need to ask serious questions as to what we can do to improve this state of affairs and ensure we’re championing a culture that is inclusive of trans individuals, to ensure they have happier, healthier working lives.

“I call upon all companies, big or small, to consider the steps they can take across their attraction, recruitment and retention strategies to remove the barriers faced by trans people. In particular, having a firm stance against anti-trans behaviour or abuse at work is non-negotiable; nobody should have to feel unwelcome or unsafe at work.”

Lee Clatworthy, spokesperson from trans charity Sparkle, added, “Many organisations are doing great Diversity, Equity & Inclusion work internally, which is obviously important in retaining a diverse workforce that feels valued, but many are not promoting this work outside of the organisation to attract candidates from a variety of backgrounds.

“We would recommend de-gendering the language on application forms and throughout the recruitment process, to ensure the first interaction with your company is as inclusive as possible.

“Having one single point of contact for all candidates, who is trained to be sensitive to the barriers that trans and gender diverse candidates may face, also helps to build the trust from trans employees that they’ll be welcomed in the organisation.”

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