A lesbian mother in Phoenix, Arizona was reportedly been denied a promotion because her manager wanted her to dress more “gender appropriate.” As reported by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Meagan Hunter legitimately loved her role as a server at Chili’s Grill & Bar. She enjoyed working for the company so much, in fact, she was eager to take on the opportunity when her supervisors encouraged her to apply for a training program to eventually become a manager.
How did this play out? First, Hunter went to a seminar to learn more about the Chili’s Certified Shift Leader program. Later, the general manager told her a district manager said they’d spotted her at the seminar. Their feedback? That she was “inappropriately dressed.”
Her outfit? Boat shoes, fitted slacks, and a men’s button-up. Basically, nothing inappropriate about it.
Later, when she interviewed for the manager position (a promotion within the company), the critiques on her clothes returned. “We really want to hire you,” the general manager allegedly told her. “However, we need you to dress more gender appropriate.”
Hunter eventually left Chili’s, knowing she couldn’t continue to work in these conditions. “I couldn’t continue to work at a place where my willingness to conform to a stereotype was more important than my job performance,” she wrote in a blog on the ACLU.
Before she left, she inquired about wearing a chef-style coat, as her general manager wore. The response? “It’s for boys.”
After she left, Hunter found out that the general manager talked to coworkers behind her back, saying she hadn’t gotten a bartender position because he “didn’t want a gay girl behind the bar.” Why? He didn’t think she’d bring in the “right kind” of customers.
How did Hunter survive after having to leave her job of two years? She writes, “After I was forced to quit, I was unemployed for a month. I finally found a new server job, but as the new employee, I get fewer hours on the schedule and so I’m earning significantly less than I did at Chili’s.”
This story reeks of blatant, practically textbook, discrimination, but it’s surprisingly common. Queer and gender non-conforming women and trans folks face discrimination based on their appearance and presentation at every step of the employment process; from confusion over pronouns during an interview, to what to wear to work, to what bathrooms to use.
According to Out & Equal, one out of every four LGBT employees reports experiencing employment discrimination within the last five years, and nearly one in 10 LGBT employees have, like Hunter, ultimately left a job because the environment was so unwelcoming. For trans people, the unemployment rate is staggering and comes in at three times higher than the national average. 27 percent of trans workers report being denied a promotion, fired, or not hired, period, because of their gender identity.
And Hunter? With the support of the ACLU, she filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against Chili’s for sex discrimination.