Kellie Maloney and Caitlyn Jenner Are Celebs - But What Happens If You Are Trans and Not Famous?

Caitlyn Jenner has done a great thing to advance awareness of trans people. Frank Maloney from the boxing world opened eyes with wonderfully honest discussions about becoming Kellie. But what if you don't happen to have a large paid staff or support crew around to help you live as an out transgender person?

Caitlyn Jenner has done a great thing to advance awareness of trans people. Frank Maloney from the boxing world opened eyes with wonderfully honest discussions about becoming Kellie. But what if you don't happen to have a large paid staff or support crew around to help you live as an out transgender person?

Next time you see someone you think - or know - to be a transgender person, reflect on this: chances are that their daily life this past year has likely been measurably tougher in lots of ways than yours.

New data from the world's largest LGBT global study - LGBT2030 - shows that trans people in the UK are having a tougher time in normal everyday situations than most of us.

At work

Coming out as LGBT can be tough. Ask any LGBT person and most will tell you they had to come to terms with who they would tell, and when.

At work it can become even more complicated with dynamics like promotions, office politics and career progress in play, so deciding whether to come out proves challenging for many LGBT people.

Out Now's new 'LGBT Diversity: Show Me The Business Case' workplace report shows that the trans community often does it even tougher than the other members of the overall LGBT community, who are not always having an easy time in their workplaces.

And it is not just tough for many trans people at work in the UK.

For many, just trying to go about their daily lives can be a challenge - one which most of us would probably find it quite tough to deal with.

Luckily for newly-out Caitlin Jenner, she has a self-made career plus a whole team of paid work assistants to help her. But almost all other trans people are never going to be that fortunate.

Take promotions at work.

22% of the total LGBT2030 UK sample agrees with the statement "If I come out at work I think it might have an effect on my prospects for future promotions."

That figure though rises significantly to 48% when we look at trans respondents alone.

Consider then another question, about harassment. We asked if respondents had experienced harassment in the workplace last year because they were perceived to be LGBT.

While a high 13% of the total LGBT2030 UK sample were personally harassed last year for being LGBT at work, this doubles to 26% of UK trans employees who have been personally harassed in the past 12 months because they are LGBT.

That is more than one in four from all trans respondents - which adds up to a very large amount of harassment against trans people, happening in UK workplaces right now.

Out in society

So how about outside work - what's the situation like? Again - not so good if you're trans.

The LGBT2030 study found that 6% of all UK LGBT respondents were refused goods or services last year. That is worryingly high for a country often considered to be enlightened and progressive.

This more than doubled to 14% for trans people. That's one in every seven trans respondents in the research who were told by a shop or business in the past year that they would not serve them, because they are trans.

Imagine how that feels. Imagine what it could do to your self-confidence the next time you need to go out to buy something.

Many trans people are stronger and more resilient than you might imagine - they've had to be.

More than half of all trans respondents (54%) were verbally harassed last year (compared to 38% for all UK LGBT respondents) and 14% of trans people in the UK LGBT2030 survey report being physically assaulted last year because they are transgender.

What this data shows is we should all be concerned about what are some quite shocking levels of abuse directed towards trans people, minding their own business when out and about in society.

Finishing then where we started, this research data simply underscores why so few trans people feel comfortable to be out in their own workplaces.

In the UK, 45% of all LGBT survey respondents - just under half - are out to everyone they work with. Not a great number perhaps, but better than many other countries Out Now surveys.

However the number of trans people who feel able to be out with everyone at work drops to just 28% - or a little over one in four. And one in three UK trans respondents (32%) are simply not out to anyone at all in their workplace.

Think, and respect

So what should this all mean to you?

It means there needs to be a lot more attention placed on how well we each treat people in our society who happen to have been born into a gender other than the one in which they need to live.

We each can reflect on what it must feel like to go through such recurring incidents of harassment, living with the fear of these things happening day after day - yet still be able to find the strength to persevere.

Think of the inner-strength that must be there for transgender people to - despite so much potential for negative outcomes against them - simply persist, so that they can live as they need to live - by being themselves.

This data causes concern but can also be a source of great respect for trans people of the UK, many of whom are living their lives facing high levels of antagonism.

Seems to me that trans people are an important part of our society we can all learn from, and perhaps by taking some time to think about how we might help make a difference through our own attitudes and actions we could become more understanding - and welcoming - to the diversity that is a fact of life around all of us.

That is something that is definitely worthwhile - and you don't need any support crew or a reality TV programme to achieve it.

The Out Now LGBT2030 global research initiative is the world's largest LGBT study. It has sampled more than 100,000 respondents over five years, in more than 20 countries in 14 different languages. Workplace data from this article can be downloaded at no cost from www.OutNow.LGBT - where you will find a request form to receive your free copy of the 'LGBT Diversity: Show Me The Business Case' report. This report covers data from ten countries and focuses on workplace-related issues.

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