Pronouns refusal could land boss a lawsuit

Q : One of my employees recently announced that he identifies as a woman, and asked us to use the preferred pronouns “she” and “her.” The worker doesn’t wear dresses or makeup or anything. For the most part, other workers are continuing to use male pronouns when referring to this employee. The worker came to me, asking me to do something about it. I said there isn’t much I can do. I can’t force other workers to use pronouns that don’t match what they see. This worker told me I’m discriminating against him (her?) by allowing other workers to “misgender” him (her?) and threatened to sue. Can I really be sued for this?

A : Yes, you really can. In 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in Bostock v Clayton County that prohibitions against discrimination “because of sex” in Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act also bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The discriminatory behavior prohibited includes unwelcome conduct, based on a person’s membership in a protected category like race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, national origin, or disability, that is so severe and pervasive that it creates a “hostile work environment.”