Last year, while looking for a new job, I researched transgender-friendly companies online and several were recommended. I was happy to notice that one of them was hiring for a local outlet. I immediately applied and got the job. Although the pay was FAR LESS that what I was making, I took the job based upon, not only their reputation and policies against anti-harassment, but also seeing someone whom I assumed was transgender working there when I walked in and others who I could see were gay. They even had other stores throughout the country and in Canada, so if I do move, I can just transfer! This must be a great place to work during my transition right? WRONG. SO WRONG.
Soon after starting my employment, I heard several
employees mocking the employee I presumed was transgender. They found photos of him online in a dress and make-up. As most of the comments were made out of ignorance, I offered my
viewpoint in hopes of educating them on their misconceptions.
Although the most of employees involved in the conversation
were OK with me defending the other employee’s lifestyle, one was not. He began
to harass me in various ways, including constantly demanding that I get off the machinery as soon I’d start to use it (thus not allowing me to do me job).
After confronting him about that in front of a manager, he
stopped harassing me directly; opting instead to create a rift between myself
and other co-workers and then coaching them on things to do to harass me.
This led to me having to endure several months of harassment
in various forms, including one employee being coached to call me “faggot” in
Portuguese (which he did on a constant basis). I overheard the conversation leading up to that where my homophobic co-worker told the harasser, " If you call him "Americone" you won't get fired for it... If he complains, you can say that you were just calling him "American!"
I reported several of the issues to management, which ultimately turned
out with me being harassed even further.
Soon after that began, They hired a new guy named Vic. One day, I went to use an order picker that
was in the department of the employee who refused to let me use it before. To
avoid conflict, I asked him if he was going to use it and if he’d mind if I
did. He very nicely said, “No. You can use it” and then immediately told Vic to
go take the order picker from me.
Vic rushed up to me and began yelling at me, demanding that
I get off the machine so he could use it. When I told him that I just got on
it, he again demanded that I didn't get off it, he’d “kick my ass”.
To avoid conflict, I got off the machine and told my
supervisor, who then spoke with Vic. Although Vic came to me to apologize,
several hours later he began with verbal harassment which proceeded non-stop
ever since.
He began, amougst other things, to constantly "scream-chant" my name
in a way that I can only describe as a “gay-bash slurring”. This became
non-stop throughout the night… and every night. One several occasions, many of
which were witnessed be co-workers and management, I asked him to stop doing
that as it offended me. He would initially apologize but then go back to doing
it again minutes later… even louder and more offensive than before.
I repeatedly asked him (in front of co-workers and management) to stop, as I found it offensive. One night, before break, I again asked him to stop again. Again he apologized and we all went
outside on break. I was standing approximately 12 feet from him when he again
began with the verbal harassment.
After repeatedly asking him nicely for months to stop
harassing me and repeatedly going to management (only to be harassed and
threatened further), I yelled “I’m tired of being harassed by you. This is
going to stop!” Several words were said back and forth and out of self-defense,
I stated, “Look at you. You’re a Hell of a lot bigger than I am. If it comes
down to it, it’s going to end up with one punch and you’ll be in the hospital.”
This was not said to antagonize him but rather in hopes of intimidating him to
back down and stop harassing me.
After most of the employees went inside (and it was only
myself, another co-worker, and Vic outside), he decided to stay out (in my opinion to
show that he was not intimidated be me). He went over to my other co-worker and began to
talk about non-related things. When neither one of us responded, I noticed the
look in his eyes… To me, it was the look of a frustrated high-school bully that
just realized that he lost his reputation by being put in his place by someone
much smaller than himself.
In my opinion, that is the only reason (aside from also probably being encouraged by the homo-phoebe) why he soon reported what
had happened outside to the manager… to get me fired as retribution.
Well... I guess he is getting his wish... a week after the incident, the HR manager is demanding an incident report from me. The report I submitted is very similar to what is written here... They homo-phobic employee was spoken too (not suspended or fired for subjecting me to 7 months of harassment... just spoken to) and again, things immediately got worse. He went to each employee and told them what was said. I'm also assuming he mentioned something about me being transgender to them as well as every co-worker from that point on began to look at me strangely, most refused to talk to me and some even laughed in my face.
7 months of hell... 7 months of harassment that was so bad (even after reporting it several times to management) that I'd get panic attacks some nights before going to work... If they fire me for standing up for myself after they refused to... I'm contacting a lawyer and taking this to the press and media... in the hopes that no one else will have to endure what I have for the past 7 months... at a company that claims to be transgender friendly.
Side notes: I don't "rat" on co-workers. When I have a problem with them, I approach them directly and resolve the issue. As it did not work here, I opted to explain the issue with a manager WITH the co-worker present. Also, I am not a patsy and have never let others speak to me in the way that people here have. I only allowed it for as long as I did because I did not want to loose my job.
#transgenderissues #transgenderemployment #homophobes #harassment #girlslikeus
