Trans workers win rights at Raytheon
By
Bryan G. Pfeifer
Boston
Published Aug 5, 2005 11:07 PM
As a result of pressure
from within and without, the Raytheon Company announced the week of July 24
that it is expanding its equal opportunity employment policy to include
transgender and transsexual workers. (www.boston.com).
Based in Waltham,
Mass., Raytheon is one of the “Big Six” defense corporations and
employs 80,000 people internationally. Presently, 71 of the Fortune 500
corporations include gender identity and gender expression in their policies.
Since January 2004, 40 of these companies, including Ford, Pepsi, Wells
Fargo and Staples, have expanded equal opportunity employment policies to cover
transgender and transsexual workers.
These initial concessions
didn’t come without a fight.
Amanda Simpson, a chief engineer and
test pilot at Raytheon in Tucson, Ariz., transitioned from male to female about
six years ago. She learned the corporation didn’t include transsexual
workers or employees who express their gender differently.
Instead of
transferring to another job within Raytheon or quitting, Simpson and other trans
workers fought to have the corporation’s policy changed.
Similar
internal company protests resulted in changes at other corporations and are
ongoing in many others.
Articles copyright 1995-2012 Workers World.
Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this notice is preserved.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email:
[email protected]
Subscribe
[email protected]
Support independent news
DONATE