Sex changes on the taxpayer: ABC considers giving transgender staff paid leave after re-assignment surgery
- ABC announced proposal to give staff paid leave while they have a sex change
- The changes are under a proposed new enterprise bargaining agreement
- ABC is considering paying for their workers' leave while they have a sex change
- Westpac and Deakin Universities already offer similar paid leave entitlements
ABC workers who have gender reassignment surgery could be allowed paid leave under a new proposal.
The broadcaster is considering paying for employees' time off while having a sex change and offering an extended period of unpaid leave, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Staff were notified on Tuesday about the ABC's negotiations with the Community And Public Sector Union and the Media And Arts Alliance.
The ABC is considering paying for employees' time off while having a sex change, and will also be offering an extended period of unpaid leave (Pictured: ABC chair Ita Buttrose and managing director David Anderson)
One of the amendments in the proposed new enterprise agreement was 'enhanced entitlements: which includes a casual conversion clause and "gender transition leave".'
If the proposal gets the green light, the ABC will become one of the first government-funded organisations in the country offering the paid leave.
The broadcaster is following in the footsteps of several private companies that already give employees time off for gender reassignment surgery.
Last year Westpac announced they would start offering four weeks paid leave for workers undergoing reassignment surgery.
Trans employees also became entitled to take up to a year's unpaid leave while they are undergoing their transition.
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The banking giant said making the move was something the company felt passionate about, and the announcement was met with praise by the LGBTI community.
'Westpac has a proud history of supporting the LGBTIQ community and we want to empower employees to be themselves, no matter their gender or sexual orientation,' they said in a statement last November.
Deakin University announced in October that staff having a sex change would receive up to ten days of paid leave - the same amount of time they would get if their partner had a baby.
If the proposal gets the green light, the ABC will become one of the first government-funded organisations in the country offering the paid leave
'The ABC is proud to support diversity and inclusion in our workforce, including supporting the LGBTIQ community, and we would be pleased to have this in our EA,' an ABC spokesperson told the Daily Telegraph.
'This type of initiative is by no means unique - companies that have transition policies in place include IBM, Accenture, ANZ, Westpac and Deakin University.'
The ABC's move comes as the World Health Organisation announced they will no longer consider being transgender as a mental illness.
Last year Westpac announced they would start offering four weeks paid leave for workers undergoing reassignment surgery
