Federal Transgender Employment Discrimination Law

The EEOC and the Justice Department have each issued warnings that employers who discriminate against workers based on sexual orientation, sexual identity, gender identification, transgender status and similar conditions are in violation of federal law.

In late 2014, US Attorney General Eric Holder issued a memo reversing a narrower interpretation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by the Bush administration. In his memo, Attorney General Holder noted that the federal government will take the position that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on sex, also covers discrimination on the basis of gender status.

This effectively extends the protection of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to transgender employees. While at least 19 states including California, Illinois and New York already had laws banning employment discrimination against homosexual employees, there was no law at the federal level. In addition, a number of the state laws did not protect transgender employees from workplace discrimination.

As with other parts of the Civil Rights Act, employers are required to treat employees equally. In addition, they are required to provide similar working conditions, meaning employers must prohibit a hostile work environment against transgender employees. This includes bullying or insults from coworkers, supervisors, customers and vendors. The Act also prohibits employers from retaliating against an employee who files a complaint with the employer or with the federal EEOC.

According to Attorney General Holder, “This reaffirms the Justice Department’s commitment to protecting the civil rights of all Americans.”