A Perth man has been fired from his high-paying job after refusing to apologise in writing for calling a non-binary colleague ‘he’ instead of ‘they’, in what workplace lawyers described as new legal territory for Australia.
The incident unfolded during a leadership training course in February when the older worker introduced his younger colleague to the room as ‘he.’
Another staff member immediately corrected him.
The colleague, a biological male who identifies as neither male nor female, had previously stated their preference to be called ‘they’ and wore a pronoun badge to avoid confusion, according to The West Australian.
The man, 63, apologised on the spot, and the pair appeared to get along for the remainder of the day, even partnering in role-play exercises.
But hhis manager informed him a formal complaint had been lodged and that he would need to issue a written apology.
He refused, arguing that nobody could not be compelled to call a colleague ‘they’.
At a Fair Work Commission (FWC) hearing, he argued that if one person had the arbitrary right to use a particular pronoun, then another person had the right not to.
The matter was heard privately at the Fair Work Commission, before a settlement was made
A Perth man, aged 63, claims he was sacked for misgendering a non-binary colleague (stock)
The refusal sparked a backlash from younger co-workers, most of whom sided with the non-binary colleague.
In March, the company, which had no formal pronoun policy, launched an investigation and terminated his employment.
The man challenged his dismissal, initially planning to take the case to the Federal Court.
But the matter was moved into a confidential FWC conciliation, where he was warned that he risked ‘violent social backlash’ if it went to open court.
He ultimately reached a confidential settlement with his former employer.
The man told the FWC his stance came from a belief that he was being ‘bullied into accepting a position on gender politics.’
Since 2013, the Sex Discrimination Act has made it illegal to treat a person unfairly because of gender identity, sexual orientation, or relationship status.
Sall Grover (pictured) said that non-binary pronouns were ‘nonsensical’ and imposed by force
About 0.9 per cent of Australians aged over 16 are transgender or gender diverse, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The dispute comes amid another high-profile gender identity case, Tickle v Giggle, in which transgender woman Roxanne Tickle is suing women-only networking app Giggle and its founder Sall Grover for alleged discrimination after she was removed from the platform in 2021.
Sall Grover is seeking to appeal a 2024 ruling, which found that she and the app had discriminated against Roxanne Tickle.
She weighed in on the Perth incident on Friday.
‘This is another example of Australian citizens having their rights destroyed because of gender ideology,’ Ms Grover told Daily Mail.
‘An ideology that is so nonsensical, it can only be imposed by force. No one has an instinct to call a man ‘she’ or a woman ‘he’ or anyone else ‘they’, ‘zir’ or any of the other absurd words that have been created.’
‘Call yourself whatever you want,’ she added.
‘But you should not be able to force your personal identity upon anyone else.’
Tickle V Giggle’s appeal was heard in the Federal Court between Monday and Thursday this week, attracting international attention, including that of Harry Potter author JK Rowling, who publicly supported Ms Grover on social media.
