WHEREAS, transgender people face discrimination in healthcare, with 1/3 of respondents to the U.S. Transgender Survey reporting negative experiences with a healthcare provider related to being transgender; and

WHEREAS, transgender people have unique needs in healthcare that many healthcare providers, including union insurance plans, are currently not meeting; and

WHEREAS, the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, as well as the American Federation of Teachers, the Service Employees International Union, UNITE HERE, and many other unions have passed resolutions or issued statements in support of transgender inclusive healthcare and against the discrimination of transgender patients; and

WHEREAS, 94 percent of private sector union members have access to employer-provided healthcare because of their union-negotiated benefits, compared to 67% of non-union employees; and

WHEREAS, 13% of respondents to the US Transgender Survey identified as union members, compared to a 10.7% union membership rate in the US overall in 2017; and

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Pride at Work will advocate for transgender inclusive healthcare, life insurance, and mental health services as part of its mission to hold the labor movement accountable to its LGBTQ members, putting pressure on those union health plans that do not cover transgender- related care, and lifting up those unions that do; and

THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Pride at Work will seek to add gender identity and expression definitions to the nondiscrimination clause of all union contracts, alongside categories like race, gender, and sexual orientation; and

THEREFORE, BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that Pride at Work will continue to hold trainings and education conferences to promote the need for transgender inclusive care to all union leaders and members across the federation.

Submitted by Donna Cartwright, NewsGuild-CWA