Pride at Work, the constituency group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers, praised the AFL-CIO for its decision to file suit against the Bush Administration’s new rules that would require employers to fire workers who are identified as having discrepancies in their Social Security records.
“No-match” letters, which the Social Security Administration (SSA) has long sent to employers, have often been used to harass and silence immigrant workers and break union organizing drives. The letters have also exposed many transgender workers, whose name and gender identity often do not match the data in their Social Security records, to “outing” and harassment and discrimination in their workplaces.
Under new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations, employers will be given 90 days to fire workers who are identified in SSA “no-match” letters, or face the possibility of being fined.
Transgender people, who, along with immigrant workers and many other marginalized and vulnerable groups, already face severe discrimination in employment and housing, are likely to be particularly at risk under the new DHS regulations. Employers who are now prevented from discriminating on the basis of gender identity or expression by union contracts or state or local laws may use the new DHS regulations as a cover to get rid of transgender workers.