Week #7 Learning Activities - Essay Example

Week #7 Learning Activities Learning Activity Do you agree or disagree with the federal appeals court ruling regarding the former Eastern Airline pilot?  Please explain.I do not agree with the federal appeals court ruling regarding the former Eastern Airline pilot because I believe that Title VII should have a broad application of the concept of “sex,” especially now that sex is determined as not only a biological component (some rejecting it completely as biological), but also a sexual orientation and gender/sexual identity process and outcome, in order to truly avoid all forms of discrimination based on sexual dimensions of human identity.

Sex and gender have to be both included into the concept of “sex.” “Sex” should not only be about the biological differences between male and female because of instances where such differences are not clearly determined. An example would be people who have Gender Identity Disorder, where people feel “a disjunction between ones sexual organs and sexual identity” (Bible 3) and people who are born with two or no sex organs, so they are free to choose between the two. With the existence of vague sexual identity because of biology, the law must consider gender identity and sexual orientation as part of “sex” too.

Gender is based on the belief that sex is socially produced. Gender identity, in addition, even sexual orientation, can also be seen as a process for people who are undergoing sex changes or experiencing sexual identity confusion. If people are unsure of their gender or sex, then they must be free to determine it, or even be free to have an open gender, if that is acceptable to them. Society, in turn, should not limit their rights and freedoms, simply because their gender identity is floating or more fluid than the fixed notions of masculinity and femininity (which should not be fixed at all).

Finally, “sex” should also be a decision for one’s gender identity outcomes. As in the case of Eastern Airline pilot, Ulane should not be discharged because of changes in her gender identity. She deserves to work and to be respected and accepted by society like others, whatever her gender identity is. Nonetheless, since such an open interpretation of “sex” is not yet socially or legally accepted and applied, I believe that Ulane can still use same-sex discrimination as a basis for her claims, like what happened to Smith V.

City of Salem. Ulane can claim sexual discrimination for not fitting into gender stereotypes, where she can argue that she experienced sexual discrimination, since only male pilots are more accepted in Eastern than female pilots, and where, by being transsexual, he is discriminated because he is not acting as masculine as Eastern accepts him to be. Thus, because of unfair sexual stereotyping, Ulane deserves to be reinstated to work and to file for damages to be paid to her. Learning Activity 2Does your employer have documented procedures for implementing gender transition-related workplace changes, such as adjusting personnel and administrative records as well as a communication plan for coworkers and clients?

  If so, please explain the procedures.  If not, please explain how having these types of procedures could benefit your employer. No, my employer does not have gender-transition related workplace changes. I believe that my employer will benefit from having gender-transition related workplace changes because it will promote greater awareness for gender identity as a human right, which will decrease animosity and phobia, when existent, against transgenders, transsexuals and the like. My employer should have gender-transition guidelines that will be discussed with employees at department and team levels.

The first benefit of gender-transition guidelines is it will ensure the orderliness and consistency of personnel records (Taylor et al. 104). It will reduce time and money spent on fixing or experiencing administrative issues because of inaccurate records too. It will also ensure the integrity of records for important employee benefits, such as healthcare and pension. The second benefit of gender-transition guidelines is to prevent sexual and gender discrimination that can lead to demoralizing and costly lawsuits.

These guidelines will show a genuine desire on the part of the company in responding to its acceptance of gender diversity. The third benefit is improving productivity and general performance through decreasing stress from discrimination and stress for employees who are not yet comfortable of working with people who have different gender identities (Taylor et al. 104). Changing equal employment opportunity (EEO) policies and providing gender transition guidelines are the employer’s initiative of maintaining or improving a healthy work environment for all employees, so that the business will not be negative affected.

Taylor et al. highlights the importance of emphasizing to all employees and any communications to co-workers that the transition of an employee should specify “respect” for transitioning employees (105). Workplace stress will also be decreased by reducing uncertainty by clarifying rules on restroom use and dress codes, among others. The important thing is helping employees understand that gender identity is a right for every person and should not get in the way of positive workplace performance and interpersonal relations.

Works CitedBible, John D. Smith v. City Of Salem: "Sex-Stereotyping" Becomes a Potent Way to Prove Same-Sex Sex Discrimination under Title VII. Labor Law Journal 47-58.Taylor, Susannah, Burke, Lisa A., Wheatley, Kathleen, and Joanie Sompayrac. “Effectively Facilitating Gender Transition in the Workplace.” Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal 23 (2011:101–116. Print.