- Conference
- 2022 National LGBT+ Conference
- Date
- 29 July 2022
- Decision
- Carried as Amended
Conference notes the excellent work done by the national LGBT+ committee in strongly campaigning for the rights of trans and non-binary workers. Conference believes UNISON has led the way across our movement in defending the rights of trans workers and celebrating the importance of trans and non-binary people in the trade union movement.
Nonetheless, conference deplores the worsening environment for trans people in the United Kingdom, including the continuing refusal by the Westminster government to outlaw so-called “trans conversion therapy” and a political and media environment in which the rights of trans people simply to exist are frequently being challenged and questioned.
Conference notes that trans people continue to face discrimination in the workplace. In May 2022, a survey of UNISON’s young members found that discrimination at work, including transphobic discrimination, was a factor impacting on young workers’ mental health. Young workers and new entrants to the workplace may lack confidence and may not be aware of their workplace rights and their rights under the Equality Act, making it even more difficult for them to come out as transgender in the workplace.
Conference believes everyone should have the right to express their true identity in the workplace without facing prejudice, discrimination or bullying, and that employers have a duty to ensure that workplaces are inclusive and welcoming to all regardless of gender identity.
Conference believes we should build on the work done by UNISON’s national LGBT+ committee with the aim of making every UNISON workplace a supportive and inclusive environment for young trans and non-binary workers.
Conference asks the national LGBT+ committee to:
1. Work with UNISON’s national young members’ forum (NYMF) and regional young members’ forums to promote the trans ally training to young members across the union, and to educate young workers on the employment rights and equality law which apply to trans and non-binary people in the workplace;
2. Work with the NYMF and the LGBT+ young members network to campaign for trans people’s rights inside and outside the union, and to promote UNISON’s work on trans rights to young workers;
3. Work with the NYMF to campaign for mentally healthy workplaces, and promote the model policy on trans-inclusive workplaces as a measure to improve inclusivity and mental health at work;
4. Promote UNISON’s LGBT+ organising structures to young trans and non-binary members and work with the NYMF to encourage younger members to get involved in LGBT+ organising across the union;
5. Work with Labour Link to encourage the Labour Party to develop strong trans-friendly policies ahead of the next general election.