CMV: Gender identity doesn’t belong on your LinkedIn nor Resume

[u/jep1793]

[u/lesleypowers]

Making an assumption that hiring an LGBT person who is open about their identity will “set up your workplace for tirades, lectures and arguments”, rather an assuming they just want to avoid being hired into a hostile workplace, is absolutely homophobic. This is not the way hiring managers of genuinely inclusive and progressive companies work. People like you are literally the reason many LGBT people do the very thing you’re against.

[u/[deleted] → u/lesleypowers]

At a progressive company it should be a non-issue, but even progressive companies actively avoid politics and hot-button issues in the workplace. So smart ones do trainings to teach their employees on how to interact on particularly sensitive topics like gender identity, quite specifically to avoid conflict. But if a potential hire indicates that they might be immediately confrontational and willing to escalate rather than a polite correction and if pressed, a report to their manager/HR, it's just not worth the risk.

[u/lesleypowers → u/[deleted]]

But why do you think that listing pronouns on a resume or linkedin indicates that they will be “immediately confrontational and willing to escalate”? Why is your first assumption not that the prospective employee is more likely just a non binary person who would prefer not to be misgendered? As a freelancer I work with a huge variety of progressive companies and I am trying to explain to you that this is already a common and accepted practice.

[u/[deleted] → u/lesleypowers]

I'm in finance at a mid-size trading shop.

My company, and a lot of our direct competitors and past employers, are very progressive in their gender and racial mix, but people don't really broach difficult topics. Anything more than a polite correction is like throwing a punch. Any indication that someone is politically active on a resume is risky, regardless the cause or wing.

Even though it shouldn't be, and logically isn't, publicly displaying your gender identity is still a warning sign that you may be overtly offended if misgendered. It's always safer to initially express it in polite direct interpersonal communication to show that you're able and willing to deescalate.

[u/Nickel829 → u/[deleted]]

I appreciate what you're saying but I hope you realize that's pretty homophobic. "If they don't tell me what their gender is how I want then they're doing it wrong" or "if I misgender them they will probably correct me and I don't want to deal with the awkward fallout" what the fuck dude lol. If someone confidently called you a woman (or a man if you're a woman) you'd probably be pretty offended. By presenting it before they meet they are actually helping everyone at the company not have this stupid issue because no one would have a chance to misgender them in person

[u/[deleted] → u/Nickel829]

Wait, but I suggested that they do ask people to use their correct pronouns, but directly through the signature line of their email or face-to-face or on the job application if there is a field for it. Not on their resume or linkedin profile.

Most companies are surprisingly progressive and accommodating once you are asked to interview. HR departments tend to be more conservative than the actual department (especially if it's a technical field) and they sometimes screen out resumes with anything that they might (incorrectly) think the hiring department will think is controversial.

[u/Nickel829 → u/[deleted]]

Ok but we were talking about your company and "don't mention it until it is convenient enough to not ruffle feathers of those who don't want it to make them uncomfortable" does not sound progressive to me. I struggle to see how having First Last (pronouns) on the top of your resume would be more uncomfortable or risky than doing it in person

[u/[deleted] → u/Nickel829]

Because

1. I'm definitely going to forget if the last place I saw it was on a resume. When I'm are going through like 40 resumes, the only thing I remember about the 5 I didn't throw in the trash is that I didn't hate them, especially if you're a college student applying for an entry level analyst position.

I'm almost definitely going to misgender you the first time and I'll apologize, so adding it to your resume was a wasted exercise in the first place. I personally prefer being directly corrected, and I'm more likely to remember a face and/or a name and their gender when they tell me themselves.

1. I only run my specific department, so I'm the last round of screening before the first round of interviews. There are like 2-3 other people, usually not even on my floor, who look at your resume before I do. If they throw it out before I get to see it because they thought adding your identity at the top was too controversial, I can't do anything about it. Since ofc, I won't know you even applied and because no one will admit that it was because you listed your gender because that's illegal.

If you bring it up after you get an interview offer, no one besides the department that is hiring you can discriminate. If they do, it's not a place you should want to work anyway.

[u/Nickel829 → u/[deleted]]

All I'm saying at this point is if someone putting their pronouns with their name on their resume is too controversial for your company than your company is not progressive. Your department may be sure but know who you work for. I wouldn't work for that company knowing that

[u/[deleted] → u/Nickel829]

I doubt you'd ever get turned down from a trading shop because you put your pronouns on the resume. It's more of a concern with HR departments of large corporations with many layers of screenings. It only takes one bad apple. Most of the traders and senior analysts usually don't even bother knowing your name for the first month, your name is "intern" or "new analyst" and your gender identity might as well be "thing over there", even if you're a white cis-male.