The political situation for trans people in the southern US has been devolving rapidly and I’m looking to move to a protected state. I’m going to start applying to jobs soon, and I’ve been considering whether I should apply as my dead self or not.
I haven’t changed my legal name yet, so my job applications immediately out me as trans and even if it didn’t I don’t pass at all currently, so if I got an interview I’d be outed then. I’ve been reading about how hard it is to get a job as a trans woman and I’ll need all the help I can get to get out of this shithole state.
It would kill me to have to go back into the closet for work, but the alternative is being potentially stuck in a place that will forcibly detransition me which is way worse.
Has anyone been in this situation or has any advice?
Frankly, that depends on what sort of jobs you’re applying for. My familiarity is with tech work and it tends to be accepting. While you’ll have to put your dead legal name on some forms, it’s generally not a problem to apply under your real name.
Definitely do start applying for jobs in blue states, you might get lucky enough to land one that offers relocation assistance to help with the move.
I work in tech as well. Thankfully my current workplace is accepting. I guess I’m paranoid about people’s biases even if they are outwardly accepting.
My lease doesn’t end until october which is cutting it really close to the elections, but the early termination fee is super exorbitant so I’m trying to balance having enough time to find a job, but not ending up having to renew the lease because I waited too long. Finding one that offers relocation assistance would be a dream come true
Start applying anyway. If they want you badly enough they’ll help pay to break your lease as part of the relocation benefits. =D
Do what you have to for your safety. I’m fortunate to live in a not actively transphobic area so I was able to apply for jobs with my preferred name even though it doesn’t match my legal one. My payroll info uses my legal name and nothing else.
Seeing all the recent news I can’t help but feel the US is not a fun place to be right now.
I sincerely hope the political landscape calms the fuck down soon, and all of you can focus on the real issues again. It is beyond unreasonable how much attention some of these culture war topics are getting. It is also obviously a divide and conquer strategy and someone needs to break that cycle.
Are you applying for a job that has you representing the company to the public in any way? If so, you might find yourself less free in your appearance than you would if you have a desk job. And it’s likely not just about being trans, but other things like piercings, tattoos and hair styles as well.
I’m not sure how well woker’s rights are represented in law, either on a state basis or in the USA in general. But you might want to consider finding out with the interview if your potential employer really respects you being trans or not, even if you do so without actually mentioning you’re trans. And if not I’m inclined to say the job is not a safe place for you. If you leave this up to chance, you might be in for a nasty surprise later on in your career there.
But I guess it all depends on how long you can afford to look for a job where you’re going to be respected for who you really are. If you need work fast, there’s also the option of just taking the job stealthily and almost immediately looking for a new job from there. All while pocketing the employment experience, which definitely helps your chances finding other work.
Ultimately there are two things you need to prove in an interview (if you’re dealing with reasonable people and not bigots): Whether your personality doesn’t make you clash with the colleagues you’ll be working with. Wether your skillset matches what the employer is looking for, and employers have this bad habit of not mentioning wanted soft skills in the ad.
Do those two well and the only thing ruining your chances is your potential employer being a twisted bigoted piece of shit, in which case it’s their loss.
Two things:
- You are not limited to the US, there are a lot of countries that are just better in pretty much every way.
- Ask yourself whether you would enjoy working at a company that was transphobic enough to only invite you because they didn’t know you were trans. The filter here goes both ways!
I cannot tell you what is right for you, but I do think it might be worth a thought…
There are quite a few comanies now that follow some version of “name-blind hiring,” where the system scrubs the name from the resume before the interviewer sees it, for the sake of avoiding biases. These companies would be a good place to start.
Outside of name-blind hiring, a lot of people use nicknames or given names on resumes, particularly if they have non-english names that could tempt biases or be hard to pronounce. It is widespread and completely kosher as long as HR has your current legal name for your background check and W-2.
No matter what, HR will need your legal name. But in my experience, HR departments tend to be accepting and accustomed to maintaining confidentiality. And they don’t make the hiring decisions, anyway.