Exploring new challenges in the workplace: The win-win of including trans workers in organizations

Abstract

Despite growing efforts around diversity and inclusion, transgender individuals in the workforce still face barriers to fully integrating in the workplace (Corlett et al., 2023a). This leads to a problem of ongoing discrimination in society and in modern workplaces, where organizations and their leadership play a crucial role. With the aim of giving visibility to the barriers faced by transgender workers, and showing strategies to promote inclusion, we explore the social and economic benefits of including trans individuals in organizations. With this objective, we conducted a scoping review of the existing literature from 2014 to 2024. After the analysis, the findings reveal that, while transgender individuals have gained visibility in society, they still face discrimination, which negatively affects their well-being. However, the analysis concludes that organizations with inclusive policies as well as trans workers who perceive having supportive colleagues are key mechanisms for reducing discrimination towards trans workers. At the economic level, the implementation of inclusive policies fosters financial performance, greater innovation, and increased market value. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.