I WANT TO WORK! Transgender People Head to Congress for Jobs, Rights

WASHINGTON, April 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Center for Transgender Equality is calling on transgender people who are unemployed or underemployed to take their job search directly to their Congressional district offices in a move designed to demonstrate their plight to members of Congress. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (HR 3017) is currently being considered by the House Committee on Education and Labor.

"It's time to take matters into our hands and show Congress the urgent need for job protections for transgender people. Every single day that goes by, discrimination claims more jobs and puts more families at risk," stated Mara Keisling, Executive Director. "They need to understand that this isn't some theoretical bill they are debating—this is about human lives. We've talked to people who have applied for literally hundreds and hundreds of jobs without getting work. Maybe members of Congress can address this issue by giving a job to a transgender person; we know they can address it by passing ENDA."

Workplace discrimination against transgender people runs the gamut of employers, from the Library of Congress' choice to rescind a job offer to the highly qualified Col. Diane Schroer when she informed them that she was transgender to the managers of a fast food restaurant in Florida who, using derogatory language, told a transgender teen not to even bother following up on her job application.

Transgender people face rampant discrimination in employment around the country, with 26% of respondents in a national 2009 survey reporting that they had been fired simply for being transgender, while 97% had faced some form of harassment on the job.  Workplace instability in turn leads to highly increased rates of poverty and homelessness among this population. State laws only offer protections in 12 states plus the District of Columbia. ENDA would ban workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Updates about this action will be posted on the NCTE website at www.TransEquality.org/ENDA.

CONTACT:  Justin Tanis, Communications Director, National Center for Transgender Equality, ph. +1-202-903-0112, c. +1-505-610-7812, [email protected]

SOURCE National Center for Transgender Equality