About the relation between transgender people and the organizations: new subjects for studies on organizational diversity

The “Organizational Diversity” field concentrates studies on the experiences of groups that are different from the archetypical male, white, heterosexual, cisgender, able-bodied and western worker. When analysing the studies regarding gender relations, however, one perceives their concentration on the dynamics between men and women localized in developed western countries. Transgender persons are persons whose identity and/or gender expression differs from what is socially attributed to their bodies, breaking with the heteronormative logic. In Brazil, where only the bodies within this discourse are legitimate, this group is systematically excluded from a myriad of spaces including the formal job market. Therefore, the experiences of these people at and with work are invisible to organizational diversity's theory and practice. To explore this issue, this study analyses the perceptions that the transgender person maintains about their relations (1) with their professional history, (2) with other people in their work environment, and (3) with organizational policies and practices. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were made with six transgender persons that work in organizations. From these narratives, it was found that the person's level of passing usually influences their relations and that the ignorance regarding transgenderity permeates all three domains of relations. The conclusions are: (1) the relations with work are marked by opportunity restrictions; (2) the relations in the job hold the person responsible for their on intelligibility and safety; and (3) the relations with the organization vary according to the way it faces transgenderity and its own voice systems.