coming out at a new job?

[Mishamigo_Jared]

alright i'm looking for a job, first time as a male. Should i put my chosen male name on my application or resume and introduce me as such?? or should i just stick with my female name throughout the resume and interveiw introduction??? and how should i tell my boss i'm trans....because he/she will obviously find out i'm a girl (birth certificate ect..) and i also havent changed my name or gender legally yet. but, can your boss and co workers call you and refer to you as a male or do they have to wait until your "legal"? i'm sorry i'm getting my first job and i want to do this as a male.

[Cameron James]

You'll have to fill out any application with your legal name and sex, if there's a "Preferred Name" or "Nickname" area, put your chosen name there. Coming out should be a conversation that you have during the interview process. You and your (potential) employer can decide how to go about telling the other employees - if your employer should do it before you start working, or if you would prefer to do it yourself so you can answer questions and educate your co-workers.

Also, do remember that in most states it's legal to fire or not hire you because of your transgender status. So you may want to be careful. Although, personally, I wouldn't want to work for someone who would discriminate against me anyway.

[Tammy Hope]

I ask this question on a general interest board where they know I'm trans and everyone there who had personnel experience said DON'T hide your status upon application if you intend to come out at work.

an employer who's on the fence will have much more respect for up-front disclosure than being "sandbagged" by being told shortly after the hire.

you can do this a number of different ways, such as in the interview (if you make it to an interview)
what I did was include my preferred name in parenthesis under my legal name on my resume. That name is also included in my e-mail address on the resume.

When I hand it in I make a point of mentioning that I'm applying under that name, and the legal name is just so that my record can be checked. I figure  - as Aiden's comment implied - if they hire me knowing my situation, they are much less likely to give me drama over it later.

[Mishamigo_Jared]

actually, i live in Canada  its illegal to not hire and fire someone for being transgender

[GnomeKid]

actually, i live in Canada  its illegal to not hire and fire someone for being transgender

Depending on type of job you're looking for it can be pretty hard to prove why you weren't hired or considered for a job.  I'm guessing that all of the jobs you're looking for at the age or 16 fall into this category.  I'm not at all saying you shouldn't put down your male name ect. but its something to consider. 
If the application asks for any sort of government ID number [Social Security number is what it'd be in the US but I don't know for Canada] then I would put down at the very least your legal sex.  You can probably get away with a different first name  [I don't think I've ever used a full name on a job app until my name was changed] and upon being hired or in the interview explain to your boss... manager ect. that you are a transsexual and that you use male pronouns ect.  That way you won't loose the job for "lying" on your application and they can't fire you once you're hired so mentioning the trans thing then isn't a big deal.

[Arch]

Questions to consider:

Are you "out" in other ways, not just to your family and friends but to the world at large?

Do you have a strong application? What's the job market like in your neck of the woods? Do you live in a conservative area?

Does this business/company have any other LGBT employees that you know of? Does the company have a reputation for being pro-LGBT,--welcoming, and not just law-abiding?

How long do you plan to keep this job?

If you didn't out yourself right away--on the application or in the interview--would you definitely want to out yourself soon after taking the job, or can you live with being closeted and being called "she" and all of that? Because, yes, some employers would not appreciate finding out on your third day or whatever.

[Radar]

Can your boss and co workers call you and refer to you as a male or do they have to wait until your "legal"?

Yes, they can call you your preferred name and pronouns before becoming official. They do with me (or trying anyway) and my name change isn't legal yet (hopefully soon).

I do have a question though. When you put down your SSN do most employers even see or notice the gender or are they mostly looking to see if the name matches up?

[glendagladwitch]

Also, do remember that in most states it's legal to fire or not hire you because of your transgender status.

It's true that most states and municipalities don't have local laws prohibiting such discrimination, but almost every Federal Circuit Court in the U.S. has ruled that Title VII prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex stereotyping, and that includes discrimination against transitioners.  However, Title VII only applies to employers who have more than 15 employees (or maybe its "at least" 15 employees, I'm not sure).  Also, unless the employer is foolish enough to say that the termination or failure to hire was because of transition, then the employee has the burden to show that the reason given was a pretext, and that can be hard to do. 

One example where the employer got away with it was when they said they were afraid of getting sued by members of the public as a result of the employee's extpressed intention to use the public restrooms of the destination gender.  That's one of the worst cases out there, and it is in the one circuit that has not not really recognized the application of the Supreme Court's Price Waterhouse "Sex Stereotyping" line of cases to trans persons. 

Another example where the employer got away with it was when the employee said they were trans, but promised never to transition; so the termination in spite of the employees adherance to sex stereotypes, not becasue of failure to adhere to them.

However, there have been many cases where the transitioning employee prevailed.