ROELAND PARK, Kan. — Roeland Park recently adopted a new employee policy establishing gender transition guidelines.
This comes after Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach said he will take Gov. Laura Kelly to court for allowing people who identify as transgender to continue changing their gender on state documents.
Over the weekend, Senate Bill 180 took effect. The bill addresses a range of issues from the bathrooms people use to what sex is listed on state documents.
Roeland Park Mayor Michael Poppa said the city wanted to make a change to its policy before the new law took effect.
“Roeland Park is a regional leader in many issues, and we are proud of that,” Poppa said. "Even issues that may seem divisive to some, or not everyone agrees on, we are normally the first city to tackle some of those tough issues.”
When the Kansas Legislature passed the statewide bill, Republicans who were in support of SB 180 said their constituents reject the shift toward accepting people’s gender identities — they don't want to share bathrooms and locker rooms with transgender women.
The city now has gender transition guidelines in its employee handbook that lay out how to create a plan for employees who would like to transition.
It addresses guidelines on travel accommodations, paperwork changes and using bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond with their gender identity.
“The policy itself is not a law and it does not cover the entire city,” Poppa said. “It’s in place to answer questions that staff may have when and if somebody decides to transition at the workplace, and it gives a guideline for that transition. A best practice, if you will.”
The city employee handbook now states a transition plan can include any or all of the following considerations:
- A list of employees who need to be advised of the transition in order to implement requested workplace changes (ex. HR personnel, the transitioning employee's manager) or as requested by the transitioning employee (including other managers, coworkers, or others.)
- A plan for when and how those employees should be informed of the transition (through a staff meeting, email or otherwise) and who will inform them (the transitioning employee, the employee’s manager or someone else.)
- The date on which the employee will begin to present in a manner consistent with their gender identity, including the date(s) when the employee will begin using a different name or pronoun and different facilities (restrooms and locker rooms.)
- A list of the employee's records that will need to be changed to reflect their gender identity and new name, if applicable, and the expected date(s) on which these records will be changed.
- Any anticipated leave that the employee will take for transition-related medical treatment and any relevant benefits available to the employee during the transition.
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