Dear Corporate Governess
My workplace is thinking of making all our washrooms gender-neutral to accommodate a transgendered person who's joined the company. I'm uncomfortable and want to know what to do about it.
—Beth M., Toronto
Dear Beth
Bathrooms have become the battleground when it comes to including transgendered people in the workplace—something Michael Bach, CEO of the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion, confirms. That's because most fears are based on misunderstanding, he explains. It might help to acknowledge that the guy in the dress in the stall beside you is no longer a guy in a dress. She's a woman. "People are thinking about the genitalia as opposed to the psychology of gender, which is what gender identity is really about," Bach says. "A person who presents as female, regardless of the gender they were born into or whether they've gone through transition surgery, has essentially abandoned the gender they were assigned at birth. So if a trans person is presenting as female, then she should be able to use the women's washroom."
The best solution to make everybody comfortable is single-occupancy washrooms. Accenture Canada, for example, has redesignated single-stall restrooms at local offices as all-gender. Even the White House has acknowleged that something needs to be done. U.S. President Barack Obama has designated an inclusive restroom for White House staff at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
Bach says the approach, however, to make all washrooms gender-neutral is misguided—it puts women at risk because they don't then question why a man is in the women's washroom. "It's a slippery slope," says Bach. "Unless, of course, the washrooms are like in Ally McBeal, which I'm totally fine with as long as there's a musical number being sung in the bathroom."
Dear Corporate Governess
As an office worker on contract, I do the same job alongside full-time employees who enjoy paid sick-leave benefits while I don't. What can I do to change this when my contract rolls around?
—Paul B., Kanata, Ontario
Dear Paul
If you're required to follow the same rules as employees, then you may be entitled to the same benefit plans. What's relevant is the degree of control your company has over when and how you work. You can check your status using Canada Revenue Agency's guide, "Employee or Self-employed?" which is available online. If you have a case, let the company know and assume they want to play nice. Barbara Jaworski, CEO at Workplace Institute in Toronto, suggests that if you have a legal contract position you should consider making a business case for becoming a full-time employee or negotiating a higher fee to cover the missing benefits. However, if the job's a dead end, you're a free agent to move on.