Transgender in Modern Workplace Environments - Research Paper Example

Transgender in the Modern Workplace Environments Student’s Name Institution Abstract The focus of this paper is on ascertaining the degree of discrimination leveled towards transgender people in workplace setting as well as other public institution centers like the education facilities. In the first section, the paper provides a topic background of how transgender has been perceived in workplace setting especially in relation to their career choices and developments. Consequently, it moves to provide literature review on specific theories like SCCT that focuses on transgender discrimination. The next section is the research methodology that proposes documentary and case analysis research method tools for the study. The data and findings section provides an imminent analysis of cases and documents in the US related to the issue at hand. The conclusion section is the last part of the paper that provides a summation of the entire study. Introduction As the degree of workforce and has continued to increasingly diversify, there has been a lot of attention that has been directed towards the challenges faced by the transgender minority group. Notwithstanding, minimal research has been carried out on the immediate transgendered people within a multicultural workplace setting despite their numbers having increased by 9% in the workplace within the United States of America and 10% globally (Van Hoye, & Lievens, 2003). In essence, the transgender people who fall under the LGBT community continue to experience lots of prejudice and discrimination within the workplace on the very account of their sexual identity. It is crucial to note that discrimination leveled against the transgender people is solely focused on underlying negative stereotypes, religious connotations and other irrationals factors within the multicultural setting (Van Hoye, & Lievens, 2003). In this research study, the paper seeks to find out the research question: “Are transgender people still facing discrimination or challenges in today’s modern workplace environments? Consequently, the study adopts a social cognitive career theory (SCCT) to put up an investigation of the early career expectations, work-related values, and a preferred work environment amongst the LGBT community. Despite the fact that there being other sets of theories like the social learning theory (Datti, 2009): and employer knowledge framework (Cable & Turban, 2001), that expound on careers development, however; they lack adequate capacity to expound on the challenges and discriminations amongst the transgender people. Methodology & Literature Review Literature Review Considering the fact that the transgender people face extensive challenges much earlier in their career development, their vocational development is perceived to be different from their heterosexual counterparts. Chung (2003) notes that the personal and environmental factors that influence transgender people into making pertinent decisions about their careers are also different in nature. For instance, the group will likely consider workplace discrimination and other coping strategies in their overall career choice. Discrimination amongst this group can be related to the limited access to job opportunities and might even extend to the manner for which they are treated within a workplace setting like facing harassment, denial of promotion or even salary increment. SCCT is a theory focused on establishing self-efficacies of beliefs, result expectations as well as environmental facets that might be helpful in easier comprehension of career choices and processess made by those people facing barriers as a result of intense discrimination (Van Hoye, & Lievens, 2003). The theory focuses on expounding how people’s immediate level of environments is able to influence them to formulate attitudes that is able to impact on their development of interests and goals that in turn forms a basis for the choices they make in workplace setting. Research Methodology In conducting this research, the study adopts two types of data collection methods that include both documentary and case analysis approaches. Documentary analysis is an imminent social research technique that is adopted for the purposes of accessing relevant documentary evidence that will be needed for supporting and validating intense facts that are put forward within a research study (Dooley, 2001). It involves an intense level of reading and review of lots of written material. It is considered to be a valuable technique that is set to assist a researcher to obtain relevant sections of information that can be ascertained as being statement of facts that can be vehemently used later to validate proposed research goals and objectives (Dooley, 2001). Some of the major sources of documents that are used for this analysis include newspapers articles; official gazettes and media publications among others. In consequent, case study analysis is a research method of reports pertaining to prior studies that facilitate the immediate exploration and comprehension of certain statements of facts. It is considered to be a crucial research tool that helps expounds social issues (Dooley, 2001). It further has the capacity to assist a researcher to go beyond the well-know quantitative statistical outcomes and thus, comprehend the overall behavioral situations through a participant’s perception (Dooley, 2001). Given that it involves both quantitative and qualitative data, case analysis triggers both the process and outcome of a given phenomenon through full observation, reconstruction and analysis of facts under investigation. Data Analysis & Findings There are different acts put forward to prohibit possible discrimination of individuals based in the sexual orientation. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is one such provision that protects people against possibility of being discriminated in relation to their sexual orientation within workplace environments. Under this provision, different institutions like the US Justice Department and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have all come to a common agreement that discrimination of people as a result of them being transgender or gender non-conformance or fails to fall within specific gender stereotypes is sex discrimination in the Act. The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 is provision that prohibits possible discrimination by US federal governments in regards to conduct that do not adversely affect the overall performance of a potential worker including the transgender people that fall under the LGBT community. Executive Order 13087 is a provision that safeguards the rights of the LGBT working within different federal governments on the basis of their sexual orientation or even gender identity matter. Notably, Executive Order 13672 further prohibits LGBT-based discrimination by any of identified federal contractors as the federal government certainly protects their rights at all times. The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission identifies examples of LGBT-related sexual discrimination claims as; the failure to hire a potential recruit in the event that she is deemed to be a transgender woman; firing a worker that has made plans to undergo gender transition; denying workers equal access to a specific restroom that conforms to their immediate gender identity; discriminating against or even going ahead to harass a worker out of their sexual orientation or gender identity and, also combining this with other unlawful reasons among other reasons. In the court case related to: “Baldwin v. Dep’t of Transportation, EEOC Appeal No. 0120133080”, the commission presiding over the matter indicated that a claim of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation translates to claim of discrimination on the stipulations put forth under Title VII. The case ascertains that any possible allegations of sexual orientation discrimination indeed involves sex-based considerations like treating workers in a much different manner due to their sex. It is also sexual orientation discrimination because it involves discrimination on basis of gender stereotypes that further includes employer-related beliefs relating to a person for whom the employee should be deemed. Recently, the Obama administration provided set out guidelines that focused on directing all public schools to allow transgender students to use bathroom that matched with their respective gender identity (Grinberg, 2016). This is seen to be a move directed towards all public education institutions from engaging sexual orientation discrimination. The guidance seems to go beyond the utilisation of bathrooms, and extends to touching privacy rights, sex-segregated athletics therefore; guaranteeing transgender of their imminent rights and identify as they choose (Grinberg, 2016). On the contrary, however; Holden (2016) notes that there has been significant levels of challenges that have come up despite this Obama-based directive on transgender rights. North Carolina State has continued to defend its law that prohibits transgender people from accessing specific bathrooms in a lawsuit that involved the federal government. In this case, McCrory had sued the federal government postulating that the Justice Department has overreached its interpretation of Civil Rights Act of 1964 ban of sex discrimination within the workplace and also ban any activities related to transgender community. In fact, the Department of Justice had prior threatened to enforce actions related to state of bathroom law that further directed its cities from passing LGBT non-discrimination ordinances. In Texas, the Attorney General directed the federal government against protecting transgender people’s access to bathrooms across the state. There is a dilemma in the state on whether the directive of access of bathrooms by transgender in schools can also be replicated in the workplaces. Despite these challenges, there have been intensive efforts made to counter possible phobia and stereotypes of transgender. Recently, in Pennsylvania students engaged in debates and speeches that set out a positive platform for the institutions to clearly understand that transgender does not make people less human than others (Mack, 2016). Conclusion From the discussion above, the study paper has argued that transgender people have continued to face intense discrimination as a result of their sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace setting. The paper has noted that despite their being numerous provisions and Acts in the US that prohibits against discriminating people based on the sexual orientation; federal governments like in Texas and North Carolina have not ease their stand on the matter. However, the Obama directives on access to restrooms to be a matter of personal choice-is such one area of positive development towards eliminating the matter. Schools in Pennsylvania have also come up with debates and speech sessions that are aimed at reducing the current stereotypes and phobia directed towards the transgender community as a whole. References Cable, D. M., & Turban, D. B. (2001). Establishing the dimensions, sources and value of job seekers’ employer knowledge during recruitment. In G. R. Ferris (Ed.), Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management (pp. 115-163). Greenwich, CT: Elsevier Science. Chung, Y. B. (2003). Career counseling with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered persons: The next decade. Career Development Quarterly, 52, 78-86. Datti, P. A. (2009). Applying social learning theory of career decision making to gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning young adults. Career Development Quarterly, 58, 54-64 Dooley, K. (2001). Social research methods. In 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Grinberg, E. (2016).” Feds issue Guidance on Transgender Access to School Bathrooms”. CNN Politics. Retrived from http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05/12/politics/transgender-bathrooms-obama-administration/ Holden, D. (2016). “North Carolina Governor Drops Lawsuit against Feds over Transgender Bathroom Access” BuzzFeed News. Retrieved from https://www.buzzfeed.com/dominicholden/north-carolina-governor-drops-lawsuit-against-feds-over-tran?utm_term=.hbqWvJd2m#.uc4zmvw9g Mack, D. (2016). “This Transgender Boy gave a Powerful Speech to counter Fear at His School” BuzzFeed News. Retrieved from https://www.buzzfeed.com/davidmack/this-transgender-boy-gave-a-powerful-speech-to-counter-fear?utm_term=.vtLXRNJ8P#.rqdKke69x Van Hoye, G., & Lievens, F. (2003). The effects of sexual orientation on hirability ratings: An experimental study. Journal of Business and Psychology, 18, 15-30. Read More