The Obama administration recently issued guidance on transgender accommodation in the workplace that has implications for employers in New Jersey.

In May 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") released a new Fact Sheet wherein the agency provided a nuanced look into what practices and procedures it will be investigating in the event a charge is brought alleging sex discrimination in the context of bathroom usage by transgender individuals. The Fact Sheet defines "transgender" as referring to"people whose gender identity and/or expression is different from the sex assigned to them at birth," and specifically notes that "[a] person does not need to undergo any medical procedure to be considered a transgender man or a transgender woman." To that end, the EEOC reiterated that it enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in instances of discrimination against transgender individuals, as Title VII prohibits employer discrimination on the basis of sex where the action is "motivated by hostility, by a desire to protect people of a certain gender, by gender stereotypes, or by the desire to accommodate other people's prejudices or discomfort."