Including pronouns in email signatures helps remove anxiety for LGBTQIA+ community in workplace

Sunday, 14 February 2021

Brodie Packer says they don't feel like they have to conceal parts of themselves in the workplace after an initiative that includes pronouns in email signatures.

Brodie Packer (they/them) says when they went to work, they would leave a part of their identity at home.

But that's no longer the case after helping create an initiative at their work with Inland Revenue's Rainbow Network, which encourages people to share their pronouns in email signatures and educates them on why it's important to use the right pronouns. This has led to staff working across New Zealand's government agencies to take part.

Pronouns are words that refer to people, such as “she”, “he” or “they”. But they are also part of a wider topic of inclusion, diversity and visibility of LGBTQIA+ people (representing sexuality and gender diverse identities) during a time of social change worldwide.

Packer, who works as a change and inclusion communications specialist, said including pronouns in email signatures helped remove a level of anxiety members of the LGBTQIA+ community might have in the workplace.

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Staff at New Zealand’s government agencies have been including pronouns in their email signatures. (File photo)

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Brodie Packer is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.

“With my experience, I didn't share my pronouns until I helped create that resource and championed it,” Packer said.

Sharon Thompson (she/her), a deputy commissioner at Inland Revenue, said including pronouns in email signatures was not mandatory, and people using pronouns had occurred organically.

Packer said they initially felt as though they could not express their pronouns and be respected, so they were pleasantly surprised at the response.

Since the inclusion of pronouns, Packer said they were enjoying work but also felt respected for who they were.

“I don't have to conceal any parts of myself. It's really important to use the correct pronouns, it's a basic form of dignity, and it’s made me much more invested in my workplace.”

Pronouns and names are important to get right because they create belonging and respect in the workplace, says Heather Baggott, Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission’s deputy commissioner of leadership, diversity and inclusion. (File photo)

It also helped create conversation outside the LGBTQIA+ community as cisgender (those who identify with the sex/gender they were assigned at birth) staff were also using pronouns in their email signatures and learning more about it, they said.

“The intention of this initiative takes some burden away from trans and gender diverse people from continually having to educate people on pronouns.”

“I hope … it sets an example and allows young queer kids to not feel like they have barriers. It allows them to imagine the different kinds of roles out there.”

The deputy commissioner of leadership, diversity and inclusion at Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission, Heather Baggott (she/her), said the public service needed to reflect and understand the communities it served.

“We also know that some barriers to inclusion still exist within the public service around gender, ethnicity and culture, disability, and orientation and identity.

“It’s important we get pronouns and names right because they help to create a sense of belonging and respect in the workplace.”

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Everyone liked their name or title to be used and spelt correctly – it was the same with pronouns, she said.

’Unprecedented’ discussion of pronouns

Massey University senior linguistics lecturer Dr Julia de Bres (she/her) said public discussion on pronouns was unprecedented and showed significant social change.

It reflected growing LGBTQIA+ visibility and representation, and helped to “correct the erasure these groups have experienced for a long time”.

When cisgender people shared their pronouns, it showed respect and allyship, the sociolinguist said.

Including pronouns was quite useful for a lot of different groups and normalised discussions on gender identity.

It also helped migrants whose names were not common in certain countries or those with names that were gender-neutral, she said. “These developments for minority rights are good for everyone.”

“We all have the power to do good linguistically, so why wouldn’t we?”