Mandatory pronouns on work email signature

[SamW98]

Morning all

Can one of you ladies point me in the right direction of the wording I can use to fight against this? I do remember seeing links but just a quick reference will be appreciated

Basically my very laid back non political company is as taken over last year by a huge US corp and since then very bit of training is revolved around DEI and being told the ‘correct’ way to think. Email pronouns were rolled out on a voluntary basis with the vast majority of the UK based staff not partaking. This hasn’t gone down well with the big cheeses in the US and they’re bringing in an AI email tool where pronouns are a mandatory field.

Now this is 💯 a fight I’m prepared to take on and my entire team feel the same - none of us want this nonsense. So just really looking for wording to use to put on a team pushback against this unnecessary compelled crap.

Any links/wording/examples to quote would be very much appreciated - this really is a hill we’re all ready to die on. Thank you

Have you checked the drop down options? The field is mandatory for us (which I don’t like) but there is a “none” option that will just leave that field blank. Though it particularly annoys me that fields that would be useful eg department aren’t mandatory.

Nothing to add to all the great advice here. Just wanted to say I liked this bit of your post: "Email pronouns were rolled out on a voluntary basis with the vast majority of the UK based staff not partaking".
Very heartening to see that the UK staff weren't having it!

So the company rolled it out as voluntary but staff didn't do it, so now it's compulsory? Not exactly "voluntary" in the first place then, was it?

Wishing you luck!

My plan, if ever needed, is to look up pronouns for one of the languages that doesn't have gendered versions - the harder to spell or pronounce the better - and use those.

Tell them you don’t want to be forcibly outed.

I would think this is the best route.

Partly because I doubt large US firms have any sense of British humour, or independent thinking.

So the spectre of a court case maybe the only thing that will make them stop and not impose their political beliefs on their employees.

Technically if you don't believe in gender you're agender which is trans and therefore to force you against that identity is transphobic.

Or something, gender ideology makes no sense.

I've been thinking about this and I've decide that for people who themselves use gender based pronouns, my pronouns will be alksdfasdlfj/ alkdsfjasldkfj; because they're obviously basing their language on gender not sex and whilst I'm not fully on board with it if I WAS and I could id as anything that is what my pronouns would be.

But for anyone who uses normal English usage sex-based (reality based) pronouns then I'm happy for them to use normal pronouns for me.

Only those who themselves use gender based pronouns need use alksdfasdlfj/ alkdsfjasldkfj; which of course they'll be delighted to do as by spending time considering my gender ID I am enabling them to further demonstrate their commitment to the belief gender is more important than sex.

Everyone else can crack on as normal

So if my company asked me to put pronouns in my signature. I would demand I could have a 'gender based' pronoun bit of the signature (to be used by those who believe inner gender essence has precedence over the reality of biological sex) and then standard English / sex based pronouns for those who do not subscribe to this belief system.

Although I haven't yet decided firmly on my gender or pronouns. It's possible they might change frequently as I'm definitely gender fluid.

My signature is going to get veeeery long.

I can't take credit, not my words or suggestion, however I saw this on a similar thread recently and I've saved it in my phone for the inevitable day when my employer decides this is also a thing. It's fantastic, simply say:

‘As a Christian I have gender critical beliefs'.

Because... "If they come for you they come for your religion and then, they're fucked."

Can you put that your pronouns are 'I/me'?

It sounds like, "If nudge doesn't work, shape the path you prefer. If highlighting the path doesn't work, give a shove. If the shove ends in a tribunal, complain about the benighted parts of the world outside the US".

I had that briefly when we were forced to change email signatures. No comment was made and in due course I quietly deleted it. No comment has come from this either.

Sex is a protected characteristic, I'd be asking what other protected characteristics would they like you to declare in your email signature? Your race? Your religion?

and my entire team feel the same - none of us want this nonsense

This sounds good OP 😁It's press material - David & Goliath stuff.

I can't see how they can force it onto all of you, and if they do, this has great trolling potential. You should go to town with the pronouns - anyone in your team who is Welsh, Scottish or Irish should use and fae/faer/faers as a pronouns, in alignment with their fairy cultural heritage.

I’d be tempted to put “Piggy/Moi”.

😂😂

Another thread, aptly demonstrating the preposterousness of the pronoun cult

www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5074562-5074562-nz-transgender-paedophile-news-article

You might be interested in the concept of "mirror pronouns". That means that your preferred pronouns are context-dependent, because they change to reflect the preferred pronouns of whoever is talking about you at that moment.

Steve he/him is talking about you? He has to refer to you by he/him to comply! Toni ze/hir has to use ze/zir; Mel she/her has to use she/her about you, and so on.

Are they for people.with absolutely no identity of their own?

Presumably if a vampire were to have mirror pronouns, they would be / .

😂😂😂

I usually suggest FO / AD.

Oh my goodness, I love this. I bet someone on here invented these. Imagine working in a company with lots of people with mirror pronouns - you'd never get any actual work done! 100% of the working day would be a)figuring out and (because you would get it wrong) b) fixing pronouns.

What happens if there are TWO PEOPLE WITH MIRROR PRONOUNS who need to interact? How do you know what to use? Does it depend on the last pronoun used by either? Argh argh my brain hurts...

Yes, that'd be a good approach I think. Present it as that you haven't looked into it much but after a quick Google you found the principles, and if you're not mistaken it seems that blah blah blah...

On the question of how could they tell you were being dishonest... HR departments are not your friend. If they suspect you of rocking the boat then they absolutely will look at your SM posts etc.

And those suggesting here you should go with he/him or her majesty or some stupid neopronouns or whatever, absolutely do not do this. That is taking the piss and assuming you're not actually a he/him or a ze/zir, you're playing with fire and you might get a sanction from HR for making the workplace a toxic place for trans people, or something.

As much as we like to joke about it on here this is serious business and as you all know women have lost their jobs over this trans shit.

Make your objections known, and do so with respect, that's my advice.