When hiring trans and non-binary employees, concerns about safety or the reactions of clients or customers may be a common challenge that employers face – but they aren’t justification for discriminatory practices, as a recent Quebec Human Rights Tribunal (HRT) decision has made clear.
The decision involved a trans woman who was denied a job as a server at a Montreal bar; after completing a successful training session and receiving an informal job offer from a supervisor, the bar manager retracted the offer when he learned of her gender identity.
Although the supervisor had commended the woman’s performance during the training session, and recommended her for hire, the bar manager cited safety concerns, telling the applicant (in French): “The client base is old-fashioned, I don’t want to have to defend you every day,” according to the HRT decision.
