What better time than during pride month for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to make good on its March 31 promise to provide and fully implement a nonbinary “X” gender marker on its discrimination complaint form.
People can now use gender marker “X” when making a discrimination suit inquiry in the EEOC’s public portal, as well as the Online Spanish Initial Consultation Form and Pre-Charge Inquiry form.
In addition, the EEOC modified its charge of discrimination form. It now includes “Mx.” in the selection list of prefixes.
This help supports nonbinary employees in the workplace by putting them on equal footing with everyone else.
Remedy employment discrimination
“By adding a nonbinary gender marker option to the EEOC’s charge intake process, the EEOC is delivering on a public commitment that we made on Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31) and promoting greater inclusion for members of the LGBTQI+ community,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte Burrows. “During Pride Month, it is especially important to make clear that in advancing the EEOC’s mission to prevent and remedy employment discrimination, we must serve all workers, including those who do not identify as exclusively male or female. Our public-facing charge forms now make clear that we respect that diversity.”
“The EEOC embraces the diversity of the American public, including LGBTQI+ workers,” said EEOC Vice Chair Jocelyn Samuels. “The EEOC’s procedures are open to everyone, regardless of their gender identity, who believes that they have been subject to discrimination in the workplace.”
The changes are coming following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) qualitative research on how to define an “X” gender marker. And the U.S. Department of State updating passport forms DS-11, DS-82 and DS-5504 to include gender markers X to better represent all passport holders.