TransActual says ‘Know Your Rights’ following the EHRC transphobic code of practice

Trans-focused advocacy organisation TransActual has updated its ‘Know Your Rights’ guidance following the implementation of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s transphobic code of practice for service providers on 5 August.

An explainer like TransActual’s is sadly necessary because — as many critics have highlighted — the EHRC code of practice is desperately unclear. As such, many organisations have lurched to adopt trans-hostile policies, even where there is no legal requirement to do so.

Know Your Rights

TransActual’s explainer therefore sets out to clarify how the law applies to trans people, whether or not they hold a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). Regarding GRCs, the advocacy group stated that:

Gender Recognition Certificates are still useful for making sure you have the correct gender listed on birth, marriage, and civil partnership certificates. Although they no longer change what ‘sex’ you are treated as for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010, the Supreme Court considered them to still to have a role – what exactly that is, for the purposes of the Equality Act – is likely to be answered in future litigation.

Likewise, the guidance also offers help to employers and organisations which want to remain as trans-inclusive as possible. However, it also included the caveat that its interpretations are non-exhaustive, and wrote:

We would also emphasise that some things remain unclear and our overarching message is that if you are subject to discrimination, harassment or victimisation as a result of being trans, you are protected under the EA 2010 and you should seek support and assistance.

TransActual’s page, and this article for that matter, use the term ‘trans people’ to refer to individuals affected by the guidance. However, as the Canary and other critics have pointed out, there is no definitive legal way to prove one is (or is not) trans on a day-to-day basis.

As such, the guidance will likely apply to anyone who is perceived or treated as though they are trans, for whatever reason. That includes people who are trans, non-binary, butch, intersex, gender-non-conforming, or any combination thereof.

Service providers and the individual

Both the guidance and the EHRC’s code itself frequently refer to ‘service providers’. TransActual states that:

Many kinds of organisations can be service providers, including cafes, charities, hospitals, cinemas, hairdressers, utilities, local government, leisure centres, hotels, pubs… and many more.

A service provider is permitted to (“politely, privately and sensitively”) ask somebody about their assigned sex at birth. However, there remains absolutely no legal requirement for you to answer.

Likewise, the provider can’t ask for a GRC/documentation, or force you to use a single-sex space you’re not comfortable with. The provider also has a duty to provide a ‘mixed-sex’ alternative space, unless they have a good reason not to.

TransActual explained that you can still:

• Seek to use the services that are right for you, including those provided for a specific ‘sex’
• Use an accessible toilet
• Insist that you have access to a facility that maintains your safety and dignity

The EHRC code permits service providers exclude trans people from ‘single-sex’ services, whether or not they actually align with their assigned sex. As critics like the Lemkin Institute have pointed out, this treats ensuring the comfort of cis people as a legitimate reason to exclude trans people from all ‘single-sex’ spaces.

However, this blanket exclusion is of dubious legality, and hasn’t yet been tested in court. TransActual included the warning that:

Whether it is lawful will depend on the facts of the situation – you may be able to complain or make a legal challenge if you are excluded because you’re trans.

‘Not all hope is lost’ for Trans people

TransActual concluded its updated page with a message to all trans people in the UK:

We want to encourage trans people not to panic, not all hope is lost – it’s bad, but we don’t know the full extent yet, it takes time to figure these things out.

Even though laws impact our lives, they cannot tell you who you are.

We will keep fighting until all trans people in the UK are able to live safely, in dignity and with access to appropriate healthcare.

You can find more information on the EA 2010 and Supreme Court ruling along with actions you can take to support the campaign to restore our rights on TransActual’s Equality Act Campaign hub.

You can read the full ‘Know Your Rights’ explainer here.

Featured image via the Canary

By Grace

Source link