GENDER RECOGNITION ACT

Back to all Motions

Conference
2004 National Lesbian & Gay Conference
Date
20 November 2004
Decision
Carried

Conference welcomes the passing of the Gender Recognition Act which received Royal Assent on 1 July 2004. Conference notes that it is expected that people will be able to start applying for Gender Recognition Certificates from Spring 2005.

Conference recognises that this act will allow transsexual people to obtain recognition of their true gender, which the Act calls their “acquired gender”, for all legal purposes and also provides some privacy protections for transsexual people.

Conference notes that UNISON produced a publication in 2001 relating to employment rights for transgender and transsexual members in the workplace which reflected the position following the Sex Discrimination (Gender Reassignment) Regulations 1999 and that, in 2004, the Trades Union Congress published “Advice on Trans Rights in the Workplace” which takes the new act into account.

Conference instructs the National Lesbian and Gay Committee (NLGC) to promote the new Gender Recognition Act and the updated UNISON guidelines to branches and members through an article in all appropriate channels including Out in UNISON and preparing a press release for branches and regions to be included in branch newsletters and regional magazines highlighting that UNISON is working for transgender members in the workplace.

Conference further instructs the NLGC to continue the dialogue with the Women’s Committee on transgender issues and to encourage transgender members to participate within the UNISON structures.

Conference urges Regional Lesbian and Gay Groups, co-operating as appropriate with Trades Union Congress Regional Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Networks (in England and Wales, and in any equivalent Bodies in Northern Ireland and Scotland) to promote knowledge of workplace issues facing trans workers and to promote trades unionism to the trans community.