Studies reveal trans people occupy less than 1% of jobs in companies in Brazil.
The month of January is another important milestone in the agenda for valuing diversity. On January 29th, we celebrated the National Trans Visibility Daywhich was officially established in 2004, after transgender activists, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, launched the Transvestite and Respect campaign, which focused on promoting care for Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs).
We can say that 20 years after the creation of the date, we have made little progress in terms of visibility of trans people in Brazil, a country that remains at the top of the list as one of the countries that kills this population the most in the world. According to the report of Transgender Europe (TGEU) in 2021, 33% of transgender people (transvestites, transsexuals) occurred in Brazil, totaling, between January 2008 and September 2021, at least 4,042 murders.
Among the few advances made to end crimes due to transphobia, we can mention the decision of the STF (Supreme Federal Court) which, in 2019, classified the crimes of homophobia and transphobia as crimes of racism. Now, the Supreme Court has expanded protection to homosexuals and transsexuals, who may have direct offenses against them punished as racial insult, which provides for a sentence of two to five years in prison.
Another advance refers to data on the trans population in Brazil, as the IBGE announced, in October 2023, that it will map, for the first time, the size of the trans, transvestite and non-binary population in the country. The results of the National Demographic and Health Survey (PNDS 2023) will be released in the last quarter of this year.
When it comes to access to the job market and opportunities to have a dignified life, the trans population remains on the margins of society. Two studies carried out by Gesto Kairs prove that the participation of trans professionals in companies does not reach 1%. The data is part of the Diversity, Representation and Perception study – Gesto Kairs 2022 Multisector Census, which had more than 26 thousand respondents, between 2019 and 2021, and investigated the representation of transgender people (transvestites and transsexuals) in the Functional Framework and in Leadership (Manager and above) of various business sectors, noting that, both in the functional framework and in leadership, the percentages did not reach 1%.
In our research, we identified that the presence of trans professionals in leadership is 0.7%, and in the workforce, the absence is almost total, with 0.4%. With this, we realized that 99% of professionals declare themselves cisgender, highlighting cisgenderism as a norm and compulsory rule within large companies. We cannot say whether companies are definitely not hiring trans people, but what may be happening is that trans professionals do not feel that the environment is safe enough for them to talk openly about their gender identity, says Liliane Rocha, CEO and Founder of Gesto Kairs.
Liliane Rocha Founder and CEO of Gesto Kairs
Another cutting-edge study that seeks to map the presence of this population in companies is the Inclusive Advertising Census of Diversity of Brazilian Agencies 2023, a partnership between Gesto Kairs and ODP (Observatory of Diversity in Advertising), an initiative created in July 2021 with the aim of unite the advertising market in favor of diversity and inclusion. The study included the participation of 24 agencies that make up the ODP, representing 6,200 employees in total.
When analyzing the representation of sexual orientation and gender identity, 24% of those surveyed declared themselves LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender), a number that is also above market studies that measure this portion of the population.
However, there is a factor that needs to be considered in this result, since, even though these are themes that talk about different aspects of human sexuality, there is no methodological separation in the data, which does not allow us to know, for example, the real percentage of Transgender people (Transvestites and Transsexuals) in the responding agencies, warns Liliane Rocha.
Ariel Nobre, trans man, co-founder and executive director of the Observatory of Diversity in Advertising
For Ariel Nobre, executive director of the ODP, January 29th is important to increase visibility in relation to the trans community, which remains on the margins of inclusion initiatives in various sectors, mainly advertising.
In terms of advancements, today we have more opportunities to tell our stories and that’s a lot. Our voices are echoing further and further, but we are not always heard. There is growing interest from brands and agencies to campaign about us. On the other hand, we still do not have autonomy of representation. These campaigns are led by creative teams, the majority of which are 100% cisgender, explains the executive.
According to him, the creation of the ODP can be considered an advance in terms of representation of the trans population among other diversity groups.
Our objective is to contribute precisely to breaking down this wall between the speaker and the spoken. We operate so that the conversation is sectoral and, as a result, the transformation is systemic. Advertising can only gain in creativity and culture from the inclusion and presence of trans professionals in leadership, he believes.
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