‘All gender’ restrooms now a must in QC

MANILA, Philippines - Government agencies, private offices, and commercial establishments in Quezon City will now be required to have a designated unisex comfort rooms to address discrimination issues among members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

The city government, through the office of Vice Mayor and city council presiding officer Joy Belmonte, has started this week distributing copies of the recently approved “gender fair” ordinance of the city.

“With political will, we would be able to realize the equality that everyone has long hoped for. In Quezon City, everyone stands equal,” Belmonte said in an earlier statement.

Under the new measure, all establishments in the city must have designated lavatories and toilets labeled “All Gender CR,” the acronym for comfort room.

The provision is under the section on affirmative acts on employment, which also mandates that employers grant LGBTs the same wage and benefits accorded to people of other gender.

The measure also mandates the conduct of annual gender sensitivity training and orientations for employees to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on perceived sexual orientation, gender identity and expression.

Earlier this year, a transgender call center employee sued two security guards for refusing to allow her to use the women’s restroom. She charged them with violating an earlier city ordinance that prohibits gender discrimination in workplaces in the city. The case is currently pending before the city prosecutor’s office.

Watered-down version?

Despite the passage of what some groups dub as a landmark ordinance, The STAR learned that various key provisions included in the proposal of first district Councilor Lena Marie Juico were removed from the final version.

Among these is the inclusion of an additional gender option in forms distributed by government agencies and health facilities in the city.

Also removed were proposals to review school textbooks to ensure the compliance with a non-sexist curriculum and the conduct of gender orientation activities among teachers.

The provision allowing LGBTs in tertiary education institutions to choose the manner of dress that they want to wear based on their perceived sexual identity was removed in the approved bill.

The council approved the measure on third reading following a marathon eight-hour session presided over by Belmonte on Sept. 29.