Transgender Bathroom Access

It seems that not a day goes by without the media reporting on a new "Bathroom Bill." These bills which have been proposed in a number of states, including Illinois, South Dakota, Washington, and Missouri, aim to restrict the access of transgender people to bathrooms and locker rooms.

Many of these bills focus on public facilities and, frequently, the rights of students under Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These bills while addressed to the public sector, raise important questions for employers. Indeed, employers with increasing frequency are navigating "the restroom question" in their workplaces.

To guide employers through this issue, both the Federal government and certain states have issued guidance. Recently, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing released its own set of bathroom-related guidelines. The guidelines also addressed a number of other transgender employment related topics, which we wrote about here.