An example of a company adjusting its restrooms. Public restrooms that are open to any gender are on the rise.
Cade Higgins | The Lima News
LIMA — A transgender bathroom ban was first introduced by North Carolina in 2016. The law, HB2, proposed people use bathrooms aligned with their gender from birth and not what they identify with. It was officially repealed in 2020 after a partial repeal in 2017 and statewide boycotting and frustrations among the community. Eight years later, states are forming similar versions of HB2 and are making it further, being signed into legislation. As it stands, 20% of the states have an active bathroom law. The law states that transgender people must use the bathroom according to their gender from birth and not what they identify as, emphasizing schools, locker rooms, and government-owned buildings.
According to the Movement Advancement Project, over half of the states, 27, implement rules, regulations, and laws that are gender visible, including bathrooms. While some states make it law to use a restroom according to your sex at birth, others offer gender-neutral restrooms and allow individuals to use the restroom they identify with if there are multiple to choose from.
On June 27, 2024, Ohio’s Senate Bill 104 was proposed, requiring K-12 schools and colleges in Ohio to enforce the use of bathrooms and locker rooms based on students’ gender assigned at birth. Unlike some states, the law only applies to educational institutions and does not extend to businesses, yet. This law brings up the question: Is it a matter of “if” or “when” a law is proposed involving businesses? What can companies do involving this topic?
The law has not been passed in Ohio.
Locally, various businesses were reached to ask how gender politics are worked through, a few of which were willing to provide insight.
The Starbucks location on Elida Road in Lima has converted the traditional men’s and women’s restrooms into two individual restrooms open to any gender. Each restroom has its own door that can be locked for privacy. Store manager, Kelly Lindeman, explained “We don’t have a men’s and women’s restroom at this location. I believe it’s a universal thing (within the company),” she said. When asked about people who identify as transgender, Lindeman stated it ultimately didn’t matter where they went due to the bathrooms not being marked with a specific gender. This is one of the most popular variations of public restrooms today and for the future.
Contrastingly, the Meijer grocery store located on Elida Road offers both men’s and women’s restrooms. When reaching out to management, no comment on the question was made regarding which restroom could be used comfortably by transgender people. However, according to Corporate Communications, External Communications & PR Manager, Erin Cataldo, Meijer follows the enforcement guidance from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Occupational Safety and Health Administration on restroom access and gender identity. “They establish clear expectations for businesses to adhere to, including ours,” she stated. The EEOC and OSHA both explain that employees and customers have the right to choose whatever bathroom they identify as or feel more comfortable with. OSHA’s core principle regarding the matter is as follows, “All employees, including transgender employees, should have access to restrooms that correspond to their gender identity.” Employees who are transitioning can use the restroom of their current identity, a transgender man can use the men’s, and a transgender woman can use the women’s restroom.
Chief Supermarkets, which is part of the Fresh Encounter Family of Companies, was also questioned about the matter. The store manager at the Northern Avenue location in Lima essentially had no answer to the question about the bathrooms, not because of a lack of knowledge, but because there have been no instances at this location that he was aware of.
The issue that is becoming prominent in most states is just beginning to gain attention in Ohio. With the proposal of the first law, many are waiting to see how Ohio will approach businesses in the future.
Reach Cade Higgins at 567-242-0351
