Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Sandoval Gets One Wrong

Today, Gov. Brian Sandoval screwed up big time by signing into law saying that it would be illegal to discriminate against transgender people in the work place.
From the LVRJ: Job, housing and public accommodation discrimination against transgender people will be illegal in Nevada starting Oct. 1.
Breaking ranks with all but a few legislative Republicans, Gov. Brian Sandoval on Tuesday signed into law a bill that prohibits job discrimination against transgender people.
And the bill's primary sponsor said the governor also has pledged to sign two other legislative-approved bills that will outlaw such discrimination in public accommodations, such as hotels, restaurants and stores, and in the rental or sale of housing or property.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/sandoval-signs-transgender-job-discrimination-bill-122529078.html
I have no problem with laws protecting the transgendered in the areas of housing and depending what is in the law, the public accommodations- if it is reasonable.
However, in the work place that is different. For instance, if Michael comes into an interview dressed as a man and Michael gets hired as a man. Then Michael becomes Michelle and shows up to work as a woman and says this is his/her preferred sex. Then he demands to dress as a female. Are you saying that the employer cannot fire the man/woman because of the employee's deceit? According to this law, the employer could be sued and probably successfully by the transgendered he/she. That's outrageous.
Gov. Sandoval, you have done a good job so far but you really screwed up on this one.

2 comments:

  1. I'm gonna surprise you here, and semi-agree with you. I think that a man dressed as a woman and vice versa can be off-putting, particularly if the person is in a customer relations position. Unless they pass well (and many do), they become something of a curiosity. I feel badly for them being treated poorly, and I know they're serious (particularly if they've had the surgery--THAT'S SERIOUS!) about their situtations.

    On the other hand, lots of other people are curiosities too, also through no real fault of their own. The especially obese, people with missing limbs or deformaties, the really unfortunate looking. . .the list is long. Now, the question is, can you fire somebody for being fat, deformed, or differently abled? 'Cause if you CAN'T, then you shouldn't be able to fire the transgendered either. . .right?

    Okay, tiptoeing slowly away from a topic I'm only tangenially familiar with. . . .

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  2. I'm just waiting for the first lawsuit in which a court makes a ruling forcing businesses to remodel all their women's restrooms to include urinals. The law says businesses have to accommodate transgendered. If there is someone with male parts but who identifies as a female and wishes to use the women's restroom but prefers to stand they could conceivably sue to force any business they work for or patronize to accommodate them.

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