In June 2015, Caitlyn Jenner introduced herself to the world in a highly publicized Vanity Fair cover story. For employers, transgender workplace issues are also on the front page: at nearly the same time that the magazine hit newsstands, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published guidance regarding restroom access for transgender workers. 

OSHA's general sanitation standard requires all employers under its jurisdiction to provide employees with sanitary and available toilet facilities so that employees will not suffer adverse health effects that can result if toilets are not available when needed. Consistent with this standard, OSHA recommends that transgender employees be allowed to use workplace restrooms that match the gender with which they self-identify. Simply stated, a person who self-identifies as male should be permitted to use men's restrooms, and a person who self-identifies as female should be permitted to use women's restrooms. 

The new OSHA publication, titled “A Guide to Restroom Access for Transgender Workers,” states that making transgender employees use bathrooms inconsistent with their identity or forcing them to use gender-neutral or other specific bathrooms segregated from other employees “singles those employees out and may make them fear for their physical safety.”

Recent studies suggest that while only 0.3 percent of American adults are transgender, the single most sensitive issue for co-workers of transitioning or transgender individuals (and perhaps the biggest source of confusion for employers) is the use of bathrooms and workplace dressing rooms. Employers unprepared to handle a gender transition are likely to face not only employee-relations issues but also discrimination claims. 

While OSHA’s guidance will help employers address one of their biggest concerns regarding transgender employees, questions still linger. An employer’s handling of transgender issues must take into account many factors, including organizational culture, workforce composition, the type of work performed by employees, the physical layout of the workplace, and the extent of interaction the transgender employee has with peers, superiors, subordinates, vendors, and clients. Because of these variables, there is no single formula for employers to manage workplace issues pertaining to gender transitions. The process must be uniquely tailored to meet the needs of each specific situation. 

Non-transgender employees and co-workers may question or express concerns about transgender or transitioning employees. Employers should keep in mind, however, that employees, while remaining entitled to their personal beliefs, should also be required to treat the transgender person—and every other employee—with respect and tolerance. Employers should make clear statements in all employee handbooks, rules manuals, orientation, and training to the effect that all employees are welcome and supported. Employers also should remind managers that they are responsible for following policies on transgender issues and for maintaining a harassment-free workplace.