Transgender London

Poverty Issues Facing Transgendered People

Many transgendered live in poverty, not out of choice but circumstance forced upon them. These are often discriminatory but equally difficult to combat. It is unfortunate that once “outed” in the community, life can quickly overtake the transgendered person stripping them of their dignity as well as access to basic services so many take for granted.

Consider that an employer is suddenly aware of the transgendered person’s “other life” or an announcement to transition. The employer is faced with a myriad of potential issues ranging from public contact where the perceptions of having a trans person in their employ could adversely affect their business to something as simple as use of a washroom. The stresses on both the employer and the employee can be equally concerning however, the employer is in a position to remove the stresses by relieving the trans person of their employment. Other interpersonal workplace relationships can now be disturbed leading to dissent or covert discrimination.

Of course, firing the employee for being transgendered would be grounds for legal action, so the employer can set out to create failures that will lead to disciplinary actions and/or poor performance reviews that all add up to a case for dismissal. In this scenario, a good reference is unlikely to be forthcoming so finding work to replace the lost job can become a near impossible task. With this loss of employment can come loss of benefits, savings, housing, to name just a few of the financial declines that will be felt.

Of course it is impossible to consider these issues without mention of familial breakdown leaving the transgendered person without a reliable support system. It is not uncommon for a spouse to be supportive at least on a qualified basis initially, however continued transgender activities can lead to marital stress that can end a marriage and often does.

In the case of the transsexual, a spouse must be either unconditionally supportive or the marriage dissolved where transition is occurring. Many SRS surgeons will not perform the surgery on a client where they are not convinced the marriage will survive and thrive. Some will not perform SRS at all on a patient whose marriage has not been dissolved.

Marital dissolution of course finalizes any supportive income or benefits that the trans person may have relied upon that were supplied by the spouse. This places the additional stress of finding employment at a much greater level than before.

If employment cant be found, the option of seeking government assistance is available; if the person is eligible for the assistance. The criteria for government assistance is on a case by case basis and no guarantees that the assistance will be forthcoming can be considered. Even with this assistance in place, the amount of money received will likely be far below the official government minimum for the poverty line. In other words, the person will be living below the poverty line because of government assistance.

However, the CPP program is designed so that employment is allowable up to an annual $24,000 income at which point all assistance is removed. However, the amounts allowed to be earned are determined by CPP and once those limits are exceeded, benefits are reduced accordingly. Details of the CPP Disability program are available on their website.

As with employment other areas can also present as obstacles to living for the trans person. Notably these are areas of housing, medical access, insurance, and legal among others. Essentially, the transgendered person can be discriminated against and they have little or no recourse to right the wrongs.

It is not uncommon for a transgendered person in the process of transition to be forced to turn to the sex trade for money. This of course then increases the risk of HIV/AIDS among other diseases and with medical care difficult to acquire the treatment requirements are even at a more difficult level to achieve. Without medical insurance pharmaceuticals are often impossible to acquire.

All of this adds up to increased mental stresses that can lead to other anxieties and even compound the risk of suicide.

This site was last updated 08/11/10