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Local Ordinances Discrimination on the basis of gender identity is illegal in several localities. Specifically, Allentown, City of Lancaster, Easton, Erie County, Harrisburg, Lansdowne, New Hope, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Scranton, Swarthmore, West Chester, and York all have local non-discrimination ordinances which prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity. All of these ordinances prohibit anti-transgender discrimination in a variety of arenas, including employment, housing, and public accommodations. Some of the ordinances also specifically prohibit gender identity discrimination in other areas, such as education or lending. There are numerous unresolved issues in Pennsylvania regarding how and when people can seek enforcement of local ordinances of this kind. Therefore, while gender identity discrimination is illegal in each of the above localities, persons subject to discrimination should be aware that they may or may not have a way of taking action under the law. If you have been discriminated against in one of the above locales, and are considering your options, you should contact Equality Advocates Pennsylvania or a private attorney. Federal and State Law No federal law or Pennsylvania state law explicitly prohibits gender identity discrimination. Therefore, transgender individuals who experience discrimination outside of the localities listed above may not be legally protected. However, federal and state law do prohibit discrimination in employment on a variety of other bases, including sex, disability, age, race, color, religion, and national origin. Some courts have found that discrimination against transgender individuals may fall within one or more of these other categories. Specifically, some courts have found that discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression may constitute sex or disability discrimination. Sex Discrimination Some courts have found that employment discrimination on the basis of gender identity constitutes discriminatory "gender stereotyping" (i.e., discriminating against a woman because she does not appear feminine or against a man because he does not appear masculine). The United States Supreme Court has held that an employer that discriminates against a man or a woman because of "gender stereotyping" has engaged in illegal sex discrimination. Therefore, some courts have reasoned that gender identity discrimination, as a form of "gender stereotyping" is also sex discrimination. The courts in Pennsylvania have not yet addressed this issue, so it is unclear whether transgender employees in Pennsylvania will be found to be protected under federal and state sex discrimination laws. Disability Discrimination Some courts in other states have also found that state anti-discrimination laws which prohibit disability discrimination also prohibit gender identity discrimination. Federal laws protecting the disabled expressly exclude transgender individuals. Pennsylvania state disability laws do not explicitly exclude transgender people from coverage, but thus far have been interpreted by the courts as not extending to gender identity discrimination. Therefore, while there is some possibility that a court might find transgender individuals to be protected under the Pennsylvania state laws prohibiting disability discrimination, this is relatively unlikely.
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