Another toilets one

81 replies

nowwhat50 · 26/08/2021 09:22

I've NC for obvious reasons. I think it's time to come out as GC at work.

Our Diversity and Inclusion policy makes no mention of Sex whatsoever. I've mentioned this to HR already, that they appear to have forgotten about sex as a protected characteristic, but not put it in writing. I got no response to my verbal comments, just a "oh really?"

We now have a new member of staff who is very obviously MtF trans. This isn't really a Trans issue as such, but my concern is the Equality Act. I have 3 different protected characteristics.

My workplace has a very recent history of not paying women the same as men for the same role. All new hires in to the same brand new team, the only female was paid £5k less than the lowest paid male.

They also have a very mixed history of supporting disabilities, removing adjustments without notice and making disabled employees fight for months to have those adjustments returned.

Homophobic and racist complaints where clear evidence of homophobia and racism have resulted in soft warnings rather than Gross Misconduct. I know this because I conducted the investigations and gathered the evidence on these complaints.

So my biggest concern in not where this new member of staff goes to pee, but holding my employer to account. The Equality Act is not optional, they can't pick and choose which bits to follow and I want to make that clear. I really didn't want to choose toilets as the hill I die on at work, but think this is what I'm going to have to do.

Can I have some advice please on how best to approach this? To assert my rights to single sex spaces and make this about the importance of adhering to The Equality Act, rather than making it about not wanting to share the toilets with a Trans person. TIA

OP posts:

HappyGoPlucky · 26/08/2021 10:09

Are you a member of a union? I know the common view is that all unions are quite captured by the ideology but you have the law on your side and, particularly with your company's previous approach to pay and disability, I think you have some very valid points to make that a union would get behind.
I would also put your concerns in an email so they are official and in writing. Make it clear in your email that is why you are putting them in writing, because you'll take them further if they're ignored.
If you are in a union you could cc in the union. But I would make it about the EA rather then your protected GC beliefs, if I were you. At least at first.
Once you know exactly where your HR & Union stand, you can decide where to go from there.

Artichokeleaves · 26/08/2021 10:07

If they can't be remodelled then absolutely they can be re labelled and re designated, by blue tack and a sheet of A4 paper if that's all that can be managed and afforded. But yes, there should absolutely be a unisex/gender neutral option available for all employees who need an alternative to their sex based provision, and sex based provision for female employees who need it. Male employees may want sex based too and that should be checked. Equality and inclusion (and all nine characteristics) catered for.

PlanDeRaccordement · 26/08/2021 09:57

Oh too bad. It worked for us but we own our buildings and it wasn’t too much money for them to remodel the bathrooms on every other floor.

Hope you find a solution!

Original poster

nowwhat50 · 26/08/2021 09:43

@PlanDeRaccordement unfortunately that isn't possible. We are across multiple floors in a tenanted building, the landlord is responsible for the toilets and any remodelling. But it's up to HR to enforce those on our floors as single sex rather than mixed. They are the usual set up of multiple cubicles with open hand basins, so definitely can't qualify as legit gender neutral.

There is one disabled toilet on each floor that has a radar key lock, so we'd have to ask people who don't want to use the toilets matching their sex to get a radar key and use those. It's a bit of a faff really and I can't see it going down well with our soft and woke HR team.

OP posts:

PlanDeRaccordement · 26/08/2021 09:32

Agree with above and the way I’d approach it is request that a unisex/gender neutral bathroom be added in if possible. Say you have a women’s and men’s on each floor of a 3 storey building. Remodel the bathrooms on the 1st floor to be gender neutral/unisex (no urinals, all cubicles with full height walls). Then those that want the women’s only have at maximum to go up or down one floor to access them, and those that want unisex/gender neutral only have at maximum to go up or down one floor to access them.
(Assuming you have a lift for disabled).

Anyway the reason I say this is because you’d be creating a unisex space that a trans individual is more likely to use. They’d be more likely to go to those bathrooms than the women’s or men’s.

Changemusthappen · 26/08/2021 09:25

My workplace also had ‘gender’ instead of sex on their HR website. I simply emailed them and pointed out that ‘sex’ is protected not ‘gender’. This isn’t me coming out as GC, it’s me telling them to quote and understand the EA. Just email them!

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