The University of Girona has participated in a European study that warns of the difficulties of labor inclusion that trans and non-binary people continue to face. The research, developed in the project Transcending Barriers Promoting Trans Inclusion in the Workplace, has analyzed the situation in Bulgaria, Italy, Lithuania and Spain with the participation of the Applied Social Sciences Research group, CISA, of the UdG.
In the case of Spain, the survey has included 93 professionals linked to human resources and 635 LGBTIQA+ people. Of this last group, 361 are trans and non-binary people. The work draws a scenario of economic vulnerability, low visibility at work, and persistence of discriminatory behaviors in the work environment.
Low income and occupancy below 65%
Among trans and non-binary people surveyed in Spain, 32.31% declare annual incomes below 8,500 euros. 44.6% are below 13,000 euros per year. Added to this is an employment level below 65%, a figure that reinforces the gap detected by the research in access to and permanence in employment.
The study also confirms that the majority of people surveyed have spoken with someone about their gender identity. Specifically, 94.4% state having shared that they are trans or non-binary with someone. However, that openness is reduced in the professional sphere.
Silence before superiors and part of the staff
At work, 41.6% of the people surveyed have not shared their gender identity with any superior. 26.8% have not done so either with any colleague. The research interprets these data in a context in which discrimination based on gender identity remains frequent.
The most common situations that are detected are ridicule, constant negative comments, and social exclusion or isolation. The report adds that isolation and certain behaviors of a sexual nature, such as degrading comments or unwanted insinuations, affect trans women with greater intensity.
Plans of equality with limited application
From the human resources field, 67% of the surveyed professionals assure that their company or entity has an equality plan. Of them, 58.6% maintain that this document incorporates specific LGBTIQA+ inclusion measures.
Despite this, little more than half of the participating people consider that those plans are really applicable. The study notes that their implementation is low and only occasional, a clear distance between the formal existence of measures and their effective translation in the daily life of organizations.
Perception of inclusion, but with little real protection
The research concludes that in the four countries analyzed many organizations perceive themselves as inclusive, but that trans and non-binary people continue to find little protection, scarce support, and limited visibility. The work therefore raises the need to apply concrete measures, among them practical protocols and inclusion training, to translate regulations into real practices within work environments.
The participation of the UdG in this European project places the focus on a reality that remains far from being resolved and that, in the opinion of the researchers, demands moving from formal commitments to effective changes in companies and entities.