Transgenders have existed across all classes, races, and castes. However, their recognition has always come at a cost along with an added struggle as well. The community has forever been a victim of the societal apathy and sometimes ridicule when it comes to access to their most fundamental rights like social equality, education, etc.
Often trans people often face denial of jobs and many such other opportunities. And those, who somehow grab some kind of opportunity, earn way lesser than their co-workers. Social stigma and discrimination are the major reasons behind that.
Though there are policies to safeguard the rights of transgenders, it only remains a lip service to them. According to The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, “No establishment shall discriminate against any transgender person in any matter relating to employment including, but not limited to, recruitment, promotion and other related issues.”
Dr. Manish Jain, Executive Director of Kineer Services which works for transgender community, says that the situation hasn’t changed despite the Trans Rights Bill. “It remains the same as neither the government bodies adapt themselves according to the bill nor do they take measures to enforce the said bill. The lack of defined punishments and a lop-sided approach make matter worse for the execution of the bill,” he rues.
A reality check - Economic opportunities for Trans people
As per the 2011 census, there are nearly 4.88 lakhs transgenders in India. However, the actual number still remains unknown as many keep it a secret in order to avoid different kind of social discrimination that they might be subjected to. According to some other estimates, the number of transgender is actually much higher – more than 10 times the official estimates.
In 2018, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) conducted a study according to which as much as 96% transgenders are denied jobs. As a result, they are forced to take non-dignified work for livelihood such sex work, begging, etc. According to this first-ever study on the rights of transgenders, more than 90% of trans people are deprived of their right to participate in any form of economic activity. Even qualified ones are denied jobs. Nearly 60% never attended schools and those who did had to face severe discrimination, the report states. As per the report, over 52% transgenders were harassed by their classmates and 15% by teachers. This ultimately forced majority of them to discontinue their studies.
Back then, private sectors or NGOs employed only 6% of trans people. Only 1% of them were earning a monthly income of above Rs. 25,000. Only 26.35%, earned between Rs. 10,000-Rs. 15,000.
Nearly 23% of transgenders are forced to engage in sex work, the report further revealed. This has high health-related risks that lead to them being around 50 times more at risk of living with HIV as compared to the general population.
These facts and figures clearly reflect that we, as a society, aren’t sensitized towards this community at all! Dr. Manish Jain says, “In a country filled with prejudice against the transgender community, where from childhood your parents teach you to stay away from a transgender, how do you expect work environments would be made trans-friendly? To worsen the issue, complications with documentation, the non-availability of healthcare benefits, no clarity on workplace policies, and no attempts to sensitize one’s existing team make matters worse.”
The report further reports that their participation in democratic process is also very low. Only 30,000 trans people are registered with the Election Commission. Nearly 99% have suffered social rejection on more than one occasion, and this includes their family as well. As much as 57% of trans people are willing to get sex-alignment surgery but they don’t have the required money for that.
Rays of hope
Queer-friendly policies have been introduced by many private firms at workplaces with ‘inclusion’ as their prime focus.
In the year 2020, the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) dedicated one of its stations to the trans community and renamed it Pride Station. Moreover, it also recruited 6 trans people through contractors for services.
In 2021, Karnataka allocated 1% reservation for jobs in public employment in favour of transgenders. It became the first Indian state to do so. Tamil Nadu has also taken some steps for the improvement of the trans community by providing education, identity cards and subsidised food, and free housing.
However, many such initiatives have succeeded only to a limited extent.
In 2017, as many as 23 transgenders were employed by Kochi Metro Rail Limited. Out of them, 8 quit their jobs within a month as they were refused accommodation by several landlords. The reports suggested that their employer didn’t help them fight discrimination as they had no legal agreement to step in. So the job was of little help as they had to leave their residence.
In 2019, along with 2,941 women and 83,810 men, a transgender person from Gorakhpur was to be selected to become a train driver/technician. However, there was no update on their recruitment.
Hindrances at workplaces
Despite public visibility, the transgender community continues to face discrimination and stigma. These struggles are carried over to the workforce as well where trans people are not treated fairly and are underrepresented.
Sharing about the struggles of trans people at workplaces, Ankita (She/Her), an out and proud transwoman who is a Post-Placement and Sensitisation Associate at PeriFerry, says, “Companies that employ trans persons should give them the flexibility to use their preferred name and pronoun. They should not increase their troubles by addressing them by their legal name because, in most cases, it is different from the preferred one. When you address someone with the wrong pronoun, then they don’t feel good and past trauma comes up.”
“At offices, trans people face various problems, the prominent being their mentor doesn’t know how to guide them without getting biased. They need to build a rapport with them first,” she adds.
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