Stop your transphobic voice gendering protocols.

The Issue

Barclays bank likes to claim they are LGBT friendly, but apparently that doesn't extend to trans people. 

Transgender people suffer discrimination wherever we go, but to think that it's still at the level where I am being told I can't access my own bank account is disgraceful.

Today I had a very distressing phone call with Barclays when I needed to enquire an issue with my account. The customer service person refused to serve me because "I sound too manly". I was very offended and asked to speak to a supervisor who said the protocol was for women with deeper voices to go into branch to get a marker put on their accounts which would say they "sound like a man". This is obviously a direct display of discrimination on women whos voices do not fit into the stereotypical "female voice" and I would say is very transphobic to imply that my voice is a mans voice, which it is not since I am a woman.

I have been using Barclays for years and I didn't have any problem till I changed my name to a more feminine name.

I refuse to get a marker like that put on my account so I have created this petition to hope that I can get the word out there to Barclays to change this outdated and transphobic practice of gendering voices. So I would really appreciate any signatures it can get.

avatar of the starter
Cynthia SwadlingPetition Starter
Media enquiries
Victory
This petition made change with 411 supporters!

The Issue

Barclays bank likes to claim they are LGBT friendly, but apparently that doesn't extend to trans people. 

Transgender people suffer discrimination wherever we go, but to think that it's still at the level where I am being told I can't access my own bank account is disgraceful.

Today I had a very distressing phone call with Barclays when I needed to enquire an issue with my account. The customer service person refused to serve me because "I sound too manly". I was very offended and asked to speak to a supervisor who said the protocol was for women with deeper voices to go into branch to get a marker put on their accounts which would say they "sound like a man". This is obviously a direct display of discrimination on women whos voices do not fit into the stereotypical "female voice" and I would say is very transphobic to imply that my voice is a mans voice, which it is not since I am a woman.

I have been using Barclays for years and I didn't have any problem till I changed my name to a more feminine name.

I refuse to get a marker like that put on my account so I have created this petition to hope that I can get the word out there to Barclays to change this outdated and transphobic practice of gendering voices. So I would really appreciate any signatures it can get.

avatar of the starter
Cynthia SwadlingPetition Starter
Media enquiries

The Decision Makers

Barclays
Barclays
Responded
“On behalf of Barclays, let me reassure you. Barclays is firmly of the belief that no one should suffer any discrimination or unsatisfactory service as a result of being transgendered. I’d also like to thank Ms Swadling for bringing this matter to our attention. Any incident of a customer being challenged over the pitch of their voice is simply unacceptable. We have looked into this matter as a priority, and in addition to the training and events we already hold on transgender awareness, we are taking additional steps to ensure our staff are fully aware of their obligation to treat transgendered customers fairly. We are sorry that our level of service, from our telephony centre and in our branch, did not meet Ms Swadling’s expectations, and we would like to take this opportunity to offer a formal apology. In fact Barclays is proud of our support for LGBT colleagues and customers, and we have been recognised as a leading employer in this area, not least through our Spectrum diversity network. We also have a number of transgendered employees who are senior managers and leading our Spectrum network. Barclays was also the first bank to feature a transgendered colleague in our advertising, and to our knowledge we are the first to have a transgendered woman as a bank manager. We also work closely with the Gender Identity Research and Education Society to ensure we constantly strive to adopt best practice for transgendered employees and customers alike. Finally we recognise that making assumptions about a person’s voice is neither a practical nor an appropriate way to help our customers to identify themselves over the phone. That is why we are also the first bank to pioneer voice biometric technology, which will be able to recognise that you are who you say you are when you call us. This will make banking much more convenient for all our customers, removing the need for security questions, and will be available to retail customers next year. Let me finish by saying that we are determined to recognise all our customers for who they are, and our door is always open if there is more that we can learn and do. Raymond Pettitt Managing Director, Barclays Telephony”
Mr Antony Jenkins
Mr Antony Jenkins
Group Chief Executive, Barclay's Bank PLC

Petition updates

Share this petition

Petition created on 14 November 2014