Discrimination
LGBTQ+ people can face discrimination at any point throughout their career—both during the job application process, and after being hired. LGBTQ+ people are often offered fewer promotions or other opportunities for career advancement.
Statistics
- 28% of trans and nonbinary individuals are unable to provide professional references without revealing their trans identity because their name and gender do not match what is on their legal identity documents2
- 30% of trans women have been turned down for employment opportunities in the last 5 years because of their gender identity 3
- 32% of people who declared being hesitant to talk about their identity in the workplace said it was out of fear that it might prevent them from advancing in their career 4
Best practices
To encourage more diversity within your company, try the following actions:
- Offer training for your team to help recognize and overcome unconscious biases (especially managers and those involved in the hiring process)
- Make a list of qualifications and qualities that you are looking for beforehand and base your decisions solely on these criteria when hiring and promoting employees
- Mention that diversity and inclusion are important to your company in your job descriptions and interviews. In interviews or in promotional content about your company, list some of the initiatives promoting diversity and inclusion (e.g., Employee Resource Group for LGBTQ+ employees, employee training)
- Share your job postings on a professional LGBTQ+ networking platform such as QueerTech
- Add fields in your forms for names and pronouns for job applicants
Microaggressions
Microaggressions are actions, behaviours or words that are rooted in prejudice that may seem harmless, but can actually result in harm, especially when experienced repeatedly.
Here are a few examples of microaggressions towards LGBTQ+ individuals:
- Using words and expressions related to the LGBTQ+ community to indicate negative sentiment
- Making jokes about LGBTQ+ people
- Misgendering someone (for example, referring to someone as “Mr.” instead of “Ms.,” or “she” instead of “they”)
- Staring at an employee who is with their same-sex partner
- Assuming that individuals fit the stereotypes associated with their identity, for example, asking a gay man for fashion advice or decorating tips
Microaggressions are particularly difficult to combat, as they are often unintentional and many people do not realize that what they are saying or doing is hurtful. This puts the victim in an uncomfortable position and they must choose between remaining silent (and therefore giving the impression that the behaviour is acceptable) or reacting (and thereby risk coming across as overly sensitive, emotional or dramatic).
It is also important to understand that the primary challenge of microaggressions is their sheer number: when considering the impact of a single “awkward” comment, we must keep in mind that the individual has probably been exposed to these types of microaggressions frequently throughout their life. For this reason, the true impact of microaggressions is not determined by a single incident, but rather by the accumulation of similar incidents over time. That is why some people refer to this phenomenon as “death by a thousand cuts.”
The accumulation of these small slights undermines the confidence and well-being of LGBTQ+ people. Microaggressions can lead to anxiety and depression in LGBTQ+ individuals, as well as the feeling that they are not welcome. This, in turn, affects their motivation and professional development within the company.
Statistics
- 8 out of 10 gender-diverse or sexually diverse women have experienced microaggressions in their workplace5
- 53% of LGBTQ+ individuals say they hear jokes about gay and lesbian people in their workplace at least once in a while5
Best practices
- If you use the wrong name or gender:
- Briefly apologize
- Correct your mistake
- Continue with what you were saying, and make an effort not to make the same mistake again
- When someone tells you they have been hurt by a behaviour or by certain words, the best thing to do is apologize and listen to what they are saying.
- If you witness homophobic or transphobic remarks, comments or jokes, speak up and express your discomfort.
Harassment
Harassment is defined as hurtful conduct that takes the form of repeated hostile or unwanted words, actions or behaviour, regardless of the intentions or motives behind them. This conduct undermines the victim’s dignity or physical or psychological integrity, turning the workplace into a toxic environment for them. When harassment is related to protected grounds such as sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, it is considered to be discriminatory harassment. When harassment includes unwanted attention or advances of a sexual nature, it is considered to be sexual harassment.
Statistics
- 44% of sexual-minority Canadians have been the target of unwanted sexual behaviour, such as sexual jokes and comments, in the workplace6
- 45% of trans women and 47% of trans men have been victims of workplace harassment in the last 5 years because of their gender identity 7
Best practices
- Establish anti-harassment policies that clearly define what is considered to be harassment, and include examples of situations that could affect LGBTQ+ people, the impact of those actions and the steps that can be taken by victims or witnesses of harassment.
- Implement a process that allows employees to report harassment anonymously, without filing a complaint.
- Raise awareness among employees about different kinds of harassment, as well as the steps that can be taken by victims or witnesses of harassment.
Organizational best practices
Here are six organizational best practices you can implement in your workplace to create a more inclusive environment. To support these initiatives, we recommend that you establish a plan with deliverables and deadlines for each of the following:
- Offer training sessions: Raising awareness about the realities of the LGBTQ+ community is key to making your employees better allies. People who have received training are more likely to interact with LGBTQ+ colleagues and clients in a respectful way. Several organizations, such as Fondation Émergence and Egale Canada, offer this kind of training in different formats.
- Review your policies: We have already mentioned anti-harassment policies, and a sample washroom and locker room policy can be found in the Gendered spaces: washrooms and locker rooms section of this document. There are also other policies to consider, however. For example, dress code policies often use gendered language. To rectify this, the requirements could simply reflect what types of clothing are and are not allowed, thus making sure employees are permitted to wear clothing that reflects their gender identity and expression. If a uniform is mandatory, employees should be able to wear the items that match their gender identity. Asking an LGBTQ+ organization or your company’s LGBTQ+ committee to review your policies will ensure that they do not exclude or discriminate against anyone, and that they use gender-inclusive writing.
- Review your forms: Some documents leave little room for diversity. However, there are numerous ways to make them more inclusive. For example: Replacing "sex" with "gender," or including several choices such as "man," "woman," "nonbinary" and "my gender identity is not listed." If it is for identification purposes, copy the gender markers available on identification documents. If it is for statistical or communication reasons, put several choices such as "man," "woman," "nonbinary" and "my gender identity is not listed."8
- Create inclusive washrooms and locker rooms: See the Gendered spaces: washrooms and locker rooms section of this document for more information.
- Show your solidarity: Show your support for LGBTQ+ causes by putting up stickers or posters in appropriate areas of the workplace. Fondation Émergence offers these types of materials for free. One excellent opportunity to show your support is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, which takes place on May 17 every year. These symbolic gestures are an excellent addition to concrete actions!
- Give employees the opportunity to put their pronouns in their email signatures. Sharing one’s pronouns shouldn’t be the result of pressure or obligation, instead simply share information on why someone might want to do it, and how to do it.
Personal best practices
As an ally, you can make all the difference! Here are 6 best practices to apply in your everyday life.
- Be humble: Try to learn more about LGBTQ+ realities while acknowledging that you cannot know everything there is to know. Listen to the individuals in question to learn how to refer to them and how they want to be treated.
- Respect confidentiality: Be mindful not to reveal information about a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation unless they have given you explicit permission to do so. For a trans person, this includes any documents or information that indicate either directly or indirectly that their sex assigned at birth does not match their gender identity. For example: their legal name (if it has not been changed), their deadname (the name the person used before) or pictures from before their transition.
- Be respectful of pronouns: It is very important to respect and use the pronouns and name a person uses in all communications with and about them. Not only is disrespecting someone’s pronouns hurtful, but it can also reveal to others that they are trans without their consent. Intentional or repeated refusal to respect someone’s gender identity can be considered a form of discrimination or harassment.
- Ask for pronouns—or refrain from doing so: It is not always necessary to know a person’s pronouns, especially in the case of a short interaction or when you are speaking directly to the person. You can simply avoid gendered words and titles (e.g., Mr., Ms., Sir, Ma’am) and use neutral vocabulary. A good practice would be to simply refer to a person with gender-neutral terms and pronouns (by using singular “they” to refer to them and using terms like “customer” or “employee” instead of “man” or “woman”).
If necessary, you can also ask a person for their pronouns in one of the following ways:
- by first indicating your own pronoun, for example, “Hello, my name is Olivia and I use ‘she/her’ pronouns. What about you?”
- by asking, “How would you like me to refer to you/to introduce you?” or simply, "What are your pronouns?”
- Indicate your pronouns: Indicating your pronouns lets others know how you would like them to refer to you and signals that you will be respectful of other people’s pronouns, thus encouraging them to share their own pronouns. It also prevents singling out trans people who would otherwise be the only ones to provide this information. You can add your pronouns in your email signature, on social media or in parentheses after your name on online meeting platforms. During professional and networking events, you can also add your pronouns to your name badge, under your name. Lastly, you can make a habit of giving your pronouns when introducing yourself during discussions and presentations, and encourage others to do the same. However, it is important to keep in mind that sharing one’s pronouns should always be an option, not an obligation.
- Use inclusive communication practices: The way you talk about and refer to LGBTQ+ people sends a strong message about your relationship to diversity and inclusion. For example, avoid words that could have a negative connotation (e.g., “transsexual”), remember that identities are adjectives (e.g., say “trans people” and not “the trans”). You can also use words that don’t specify the gender of the person you are talking to or about, such as “Hello, everyone” instead of “Hi guys” whenever possible. You can also adopt a gender-inclusive writing style in your written communications (e.g., “they” instead of “he or she”).
Blog articles
2. S’outiller pour mieux intervenir avec les personnes trans, non binaires ou en questionnement de leur identité de genre, ATQ, 2021 3. LGBTQ2 Action Plan Survey – Quick Stats, Government of Canada, 2021 4. Valeurs, besoins et réalités des personnes LGBT au Canada en 2017, Fondation Jasmin Roy, 2017 5. A Workplace Divided, Human Rights Campaign, 2018 6. Experiences of violent victimization and unwanted sexual behaviours among gay, lesbian, bisexual and other sexual minority people, and the transgender population, in Canada, Statistics Canada, 2018 7. LGBTQ2 Action Plan Survey – Quick Stats, Government of Canada, 2021 8. Updating forms and systems is a long and involved process. It is ongoing at Desjardins
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