We are happy to announce good news in our campaign against institutional transphobia. Many thanks for the broad support from the community!
As we reported previously, in 2022 our friend M. worked at the hospital Großschweidnitz, a specialist psychiatric hospital run by the State of Saxony. She was discriminated against after her outing as a trans woman through the refusal of being addressed as a woman. Earlier, she was rejected by parts of the nursing staff at the geriatric ward because of her gender, including calls for her to be relocated to a different ward.
Attempts by our friend to foster understanding through educational dialogue and to change the discriminatory behaviour of management were unsuccessful. Instead, she was given notice of termination – she was fired.
We strengthened M. in her resolve to not accept this discriminatory behaviour. With support from Antidiskriminierungsbüro Sachsen and represented by the employment attorney Susette Jörk, she took this violation against the Allgemeine Gleichbehandlungsgesetz (AGG) to court. Even though she would prefer to use her skills elsewhere after these greatly stressful experiences, she wanted to use her lawsuit to advocate for a more trans-inclusive working environment at the public hospital.
On 03.04.2023 the conciliation hearing between the State of Saxony and our transphobia-affected friend took place at the Arbeitsgericht Dresden. Many supporters joined the proceedings as spectators, showing their commitment to fighting institutionalised transphobia.
The result of the proceedings was a payment of compensation of 1,500€ to M. (Further details regarding the proceedings are printed in the report by addn.me [German]).
We are proud of M.’s resiliency and are happy that she fought successfully for this compensation. Overall, we consider this outcome to be a success, because the misgendering did have consequences. Additionally, we were assured during the proceedings, that the ministry will develop guidelines for non-discriminatory behaviour towards trans individuals and carry out educational work on the issue.
However, the behaviour of the State of Saxony as the responsible body of the hospital is disappointing. Apparently, they want to buy themselves off with the payment and avoid bad press. There is no apology for the experienced discrimination, and the discriminating persons and structures continue to be covered by the SPD-led Ministry of Health. It not only leaves the plaintiff out in the cold but also slows down improvements for other trans employees and patients. We demand Minister Köpping take a stance on this issue and thereby strengthen the backs of all those who do not participate in discriminatory behaviour and actively support those affected by discrimination.
What we are seeing instead, is the attempt to add insult to injury.
The hospital’s management continues its discriminatory behaviour. After the court settlement became final, they issued M. with a negative employer’s reference. This looks like another attempt to discredit M.’s professional achievements with false claims.
With the lawyer’s help, further legal steps are currently being considered. Here, too, we continue to stand fully by M.’s side!
All others affected by discrimination should feel encouraged by the settlement not to silently accept discriminatory behaviour at work. Our fundraising campaign was able to cover the costs of M.’s case within a few weeks through many small donations. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all supporters! We are very happy that this small success could be achieved through her steadfastness. We will continue to campaign against transphobia on all levels and critically check whether the Köpping ministry does make good on its promises!