Applicant for Employment Accuses McDonald's of "Transgender" Discrimination

A transgender teen in Orlando has filed a complaint against McDonald’s after a manager refused to interview her and subsequently left a message on her answering machine containing a common epithet. Zikerria Bellamy applied for a job at McDonald’s in July and left the box on her application for gender blank. The online application specifically says that field is optional, but when she arrived for an interview, the manager insisted she fill in the field. After checking the box that said “Male”, he terminated the interview. Zikerria returned a second time to try speaking to a different manager who also refused to speak to her and then followed up with a message on her voice mail (see below).

The Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund has filed a complaint with Florida’s Commission on Human Relations on Bellamy’s behalf, claiming that McDonald’s violated the Florida Civil Rights Act. Florida law does not explicitly prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual identity or sexual orientation, but administrative agencies have in the past ruled that the sex and disability provisions of the Florida Civil Rights Act protects transgendered individuals.