by Ligavha Murineni
During my varsity years, I used social media to follow transgender people in the corporate world, and all their stories made me see my post-varsity life as a nightmare rather than an attainable dream.
Despite having been an issue in the corporate space long before my time, the prejudice and discrimination faced by queer people, especially trans gender people, because of our gender identities and our gender expression has gained considerable momentum in recent years. Although South Africa has a progressive legal framework when it comes to LGBTQI+ rights, many queer people still face discrimination when trying to access public services like schools and clinics, not to mention private services and employment.
For more years than I can count, the threat and experience of violence has cast fear over queer people’s lives. It is true that South Africa has made major strides in protecting the rights and well-being of queer persons but there is still major discrimination in corporate workspaces.
Most transgender people who don’t ‘pass’ as cisgender women or men or aren’t perceived as ‘normal’ because they do not conform to societal perceptions of gender, are judged before getting the opportunity to explain themselves – which they shouldn’t have to do to begin with. They are then forced to hide who they are to be able to work in a corporate environment.
Section 9 in the constitution, which enshrines the right to equality, declares that: “(3) the state may not unfairly discriminate directly or indirectly against anyone on one or more grounds, including race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language and birth.”
Looking at the corporate environment today, it is safe to say that women do not have it easy in breaking through the proverbial glass ceiling, which is created by a predominately masculine world of work. For women, there are various barriers one must break through when trying to enter and succeed in the world of work. These challenges are compounded for transgender people who are faced with having to break through even more barriers when trying to enter the workplace and must find their voice and standpoint going forward.
Many queer people who are fortunate enough to secure employment in the corporate world experience difficulties coping in environments that often actively exclude them. Many do not feel free enough to exist in their workplaces as their full selves and with pride and this can often impact their ability to perform to their fullest potential. On the other hand, we have seen that when queer people are placed in workplaces that take inclusion seriously and treat them as human beings instead of focusing on their sexual orientation and/or gender identity and expression, they tend to excel in their work duties and make valuable contributions to the workplace.
A great deal of research points to the fact that inclusive and diverse workspaces lead to better performance overall. Considering this fact, this is an open call to hiring managers in corporate spaces: treat transgender and all queer people as human beings and award them the same opportunities that their cisgender and heterosexual counterparts are getting. Many trans people, and queer people in general, have the necessary educational background, skills and meet the requirements for many of the jobs that are available in the corporate world, yet they are not given a chance due to their sexual orientation and gender identities.