Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Is it possible to be a transsexual and have a high-paying successful career?

Most transsexuals I speak to are either unemployed or work minimum-wage jobs. Is there a brighter outlook for jobs?

Thanks

There are a number of successful transitioners here. Doctors, lawyers, technicians, etc. I can't see why you can't be anything you want to be.

Well now let's see... I've been a materials Scientist and Software engineer with clients including NASA

Then I was a videotape editor at BBC Televison before rising to Technical Operations supervisor at the BBC Archive.

I've been an information systems consultant for a major charity.

I've served with the Royal Navy as an "attached civilian engineer"

I've been a senior consulting engineer for Airbus - and now I'm training to be a doctor.

As I transitioned very young all of these jobs have been done while openly trans. (no cheating by doing a job and then transitioning after) - I was recruited to ALL these AS a transwoman as far back the early 1980's. I also hold 4 degrees from top universities (soon to be six degrees when I complete my MB BS and become a doctor) I've never been unemployed and I've never claimed benefits. Does that answer your question?

Oh and I have many many trans friends who have held equally stellar careers. Its a complete myth that all trans are dropouts.

I don't have a high paying job but it isn't minimum wage either.

I paid for everything with computer programming but I have know a number of others in the engineering fields. Several even held high security clearances because of the type of work they were involved in. Much of it depends on the education you get while you are still in school. Transsexualism can draw a good deal of attention away from our studies and often we feel a need to deal with the transsexualism before dealing with our education needs. That is why I have high hopes for children being diagnosed and treated early so they can finish school and have more options in life.

I don't have a high-paying position, but that was a choice (I prefer flexible working hours and convenient location), and I definitely do have a "career," in the sense that I got a Master's degree to hold this job. It's the same job, and the same employer, that I had before transition. There are horror stories out there, but there are success stories too.

Hello Leki, it helps if you have a desired/in demand skill set.  In my case I am EVP (Executive Vice President) where I work in the live mobile television industry.  Will not mislead anyone, it has been extremely challenging.

While Hollywood does not have trouble exploiting transgender people for in front of camera roles.  They don't appear to embrace employing them behind the scenes.  ABC and E! who I do special event coverage for, seem accepting.  Unfortunately have found I need to prove myself all over again even to ABC and E!.

In my opinion, the only way transgender people can be assured opportunity is if employers were required to do so through a quota.  Otherwise who would select me over a person who would not be a distraction to the workplace?

At this point I am lucky to have a job in my field but for how long?

Thank you,
Anne

Being American as well as married to a totally accepting woman, I still had to postpone any true presentation at work in order to maintain my moderately high paying job as well as health benefits for my family.  I attended a transgender support group for a number of years.  My experience was similar to yours.  People may have had decent jobs, until they transitioned.  Several thought that everything was set up before transitioning-then out the door.  I do live in one of the more conservative (Florida) parts of the USA.

Fortunately, the spirit and opportunities here seem to be changing. St. Petersburg has the largest pride event in the southeast.  One of the grand marshals is a customer service rep and loan officer for PNC Bank.  That would have been unthinkable even 10 years ago.  That said, I think anyone with physical customer contact would find a great deal of pushback and complaints from conservative customers. There are many phone centers here that pay decently, close to or at "living wage" and seem to have no problem with presentation because the customer never actually sees you. 

Sorry to ramble on, but I am more pessimistic than some on this subject.  Success is not a given for anyone these days, but being even slightly clockable is a definate negative on the resume.

I am general manager of a high tech start-up. I am not a shareholder. I think my income is above 95% of the working people and I have a German brand company car.

Unfortunately I am not as well paid as Martine Rothblatt, the best paid female CEO in the US. She is transgender.

Quote from: Rejennyrated on July 25, 2015, 09:00:14 AM
Well now let's see... I've been a materials Scientist and Software engineer with clients including NASA

Then I was a videotape editor at BBC Televison before rising to Technical Operations supervisor at the BBC Archive.

I've been an information systems consultant for a major charity.

I've served with the Royal Navy as an "attached civilian engineer"

I've been a senior consulting engineer for Airbus - and now I'm training to be a doctor.

As I transitioned very young all of these jobs have been done while openly trans. (no cheating by doing a job and then transitioning after) - I was recruited to ALL these AS a transwoman as far back the early 1980's. I also hold 4 degrees from top universities (soon to be six degrees when I complete my MB BS and become a doctor) I've never been unemployed and I've never claimed benefits. Does that answer your question?

Oh and I have many many trans friends who have held equally stellar careers. Its a complete myth that all trans are dropouts.

Is this real? It seems to good to be true!

Thanks for sharing everybody, it is nice to see that there is hope for me :)

I am a lawyer and make a very good income.  I have been an attorney for almost 30 years but only transitioned earlier this year. I know of a number of other attorneys who are transgender.  I also know some in the computer industry, business management and other technical fields. All of them make a very good living. It is possible to be very successful and be transgender. Unfortunately, some of the ability to be successful depends on where you live and work. Some places are very transgender friendly others, not so much. 

 I am a engineering technician for aerospace/defense company in California. I have been transitioning openly for the last three years, been full time almost a year, everyone at work has been supportive as they have seen this change have so many positive effects on my life. I know I have been very fortunate in this regard and I am thank full for it. I make a fairly decent wage somewhere in the middle class range (for California) which is fine with me never really had any desire to be rich, money is not the most important thing in my life.

Cindy : I can't speak for your area, obviously, but I work in a very "contact with the general public" position (I'm a reference librarian at a college, who also teaches some classes on reference to both undergrad and graduate students) and there have been almost zero complaints. Well, relating to me being trans, anyway; the students think I'm a hardass. ;)  One student said nasty things in the five years I've been out, and he was reprimanded sharply by HR and was polite ever after. I don't know what people are thinking, obviously, but to be honest I don't care - the result where he was polite to my face and in public was all I required.

Oh, and I write a freelance news column plus some radio and TV interviews, and while people have gotten super critical of my "liberal bias" and whatnot, nobody has targeted me for being trans even in comments on newspaper sites (well-known as cesspits of the internet!). I didn't mention that originally b/c it's a weekly column that doesn't pay all that much, so it's neither my real job nor "well-paying." The only significant thing that changed when I came out is that now I occasionally get calls for interviews on trans stories as well as the general political news coverage I was doing.

I have a decent job, although I'm not out partly because I want to risk my income right now. I've no reason to believe it would be a problem except what I read online, but I'm not prepared to risk it.

Its hardly ideal being transgender, but how many non-trans people have "decent" jobs?

Quote from: Dena on July 25, 2015, 09:06:04 AM
I paid for everything with computer programming but I have know a number of others in the engineering fields. Several even held high security clearances because of the type of work they were involved in. Much of it depends on the education you get while you are still in school. Transsexualism can draw a good deal of attention away from our studies and often we feel a need to deal with the transsexualism before dealing with our education needs. That is why I have high hopes for children being diagnosed and treated early so they can finish school and have more options in life.

I didn't know I was trans when I was young, but I wasn't entirely normal. I sometimes wonder if it made me more inwardly focused and academic, and I've buried myself in my work during my career. That's all helped me enormously; talent is nothing without application.

There's a personal cost to all that of course.

Quote from: Leki on July 25, 2015, 10:45:13 AM
Is this real? It seems to good to be true!

Thanks for sharing everybody, it is nice to see that there is hope for me :)

Cindy was one of my referees for medical school. She has seen my resume she can vouch for the fact that this is 100 percent genuine. I really have done all of that and a few more things. I did have a lot of luck it is true and I accept that I am not typical but I exist and therefore the attitude which assumes failure is inevitable is false!

Quote from: AnonyMs on July 25, 2015, 01:06:16 PM
I didn't know I was trans when I was young, but I wasn't entirely normal. I sometimes wonder if it made me more inwardly focused and academic, and I've buried myself in my work during my career. That's all helped me enormously; talent is nothing without application.

There's a personal cost to all that of course.

My pet theory is that we tend to be a bit brighter than the population from wrestling with the impossible problem of ourself. You tend to find indications of that on this web site because the people here are bright, witty and in general very interesting people to learn about. I also found computers a distraction from my personal issues. I could spend hour concentrating on a problem pushing the emotions out of my mind giving me relief from my personal problems. Yes they would return to me at home but as I never was into drugs or alcohol, I took what I could get.

Are You asking about those who transition and then seek employment or those who transition while having established career? If the latter case is relevant, then I am civil servant (human rights lawyer). It is governmental job, maybe not the best paid, but quite interesting because we are often dealing with high profile cases (I do have security clearance as well). I have LL.B. and two Master's degrees - in the Criminal Law and Public International Law + European Law.
Also, as I found out the whole area of human rights is quite acceptable for transgender people (and LGBT in general), so in the end I turned out to be lucky :).

I know of several transgender people (including myself) that work in professional, white collar jobs, so yes we are out there.

Define what you consider "successful" or consider a "decent" job...

I work as a poker dealer, I make about $25/hour, and no, I didn't have this job before transitioning. I got fired from two jobs in a row due to transitioning, had to apply for this job as a newly-transitioned trans woman with NO work history under my legal name, all of my references having been pre-transition, and I still got hired, and am doing quite well. And if I can do that in a field which is completely customer-service oriented, where my entire job is interacting with hundreds of people on a daily basis and making sure they're having a good time, which you'd assume is the last job a trans woman living in a conservative blue-collar city would get hired for, trust me, other people can too.

One of my best trans friends (who used to post here but doesn't anymore,) just had a job offer from a programming company for $100K/year, and in fact I have probably 5+ trans friends who are working in tech and thriving.

If you mean like being a millionaire CEO, there's not many of them. But if you mean a good stable full-time job that can pay your bills, let you live comfortably, and support a family, then yes, it's more than achievable for a vast majority of trans people.

Being trans has been proven to be a factor for hiring discrimination, but really it's not the big death sentence those in bad positions are afraid it is. Really it's just a matter of having the job skills and the people skills to be a desirable candidate, just the same as it is for cis people.

In a word yes!

I am a Sr. Systems Administrator for high tech company.

Leki - think of it like this, the trans community is now where women were back in the 1950's. Back then if you were a woman it was possible to be a high flier but you had be a LOT smarter, a lot more hardworking, and quite a bit luckier than everyone else... Thats essentially how I got where I got, I'm pretty smart, I work hard and I had luck.

However the good news is that as more women succeeded and people saw that they could do the job it became easier for each successive generation so that now, while there is still work to be done, its not so unusual for a woman to succeed.

The same is happening in the trans world. Back in 1965 when I was a childhood transitioner, it was unheard of - which actually made it easier for me because almost everyone was too shocked to react at the fact that my parents had gone along with this.

In school I knew that I had been lucky and that I might not be so lucky a second time, so I realised that I need to work hard and get good results and not waste my time faffing about with all the uber-girly stuf and boys... I had to apply myself to my studies and I did.

When I had my SRS and was applying for jobs I think sometimes I actually gained by the shock value - people were just so impressed at my Chutzpah at having dared to apply that they remembered me - and sometimes hired me, and when I got opportunities I didnt waste them. I made sure I delivered.

Thats basically the story - work hard, be smart, and when you get opportunities use them, and you can then succeed.

I was working for a small hospital, maintaining their computer system in the operating room, when I transitioned 4 years ago.   

After about a year, our company sold out, and the computer system that I'd maintained was scheduled to be replaced.   I assumed that I would be out of a job considering that I was 64 at the time and trans.

Instead, the new company hired me, sent me to school, and now I'm a software analyst for them.   I am probably at the bottom of the pay scale for the work that I do, but I've never been one to chase dollars.

I was pleased that they never blinked at my obvious trans status, and have been treated with utmost fairness at the new job.

I am a Senior Director for a department in a major university, research, teaching Hospital. I am also a Professional Mechanical  Engineer. 

I am out to 70 or so at work and will be fully out 9/1/2015. The COO, SVP HR, my SVP are aware and support me. I have been promoted while being out to my boss.  I am on an Infection Control Committee and a committee overseeing a device going for FDA approval (appointed by the COO). We are a regional Ebola center and I am a trained responder. I don and doff the medical teams. There are only 20 or so of us in the system.

We are a very conservative Hospital in some ways and very liberal in others. LGBTI are supported.

Quote from: Jessie Ann on July 25, 2015, 10:59:21 AM
I am a lawyer and make a very good income.  I have been an attorney for almost 30 years but only transitioned earlier this year. I know of a number of other attorneys who are transgender. 

Wow Jessie Ann!  I was on that path for a while. If you ever need a paralegal, keep me in mind :)
I currently work in admin for a college, Not the top, but a decent-paying job. And I doubt my transition would affect me being there (other than the typical "bumps")

Quote from: Jessie Ann on July 25, 2015, 10:59:21 AM
I am a lawyer and make a very good income.  I have been an attorney for almost 30 years but only transitioned earlier this year. I know of a number of other attorneys who are transgender.  I also know some in the computer industry, business management and other technical fields. All of them make a very good living. It is possible to be very successful and be transgender. Unfortunately, some of the ability to be successful depends on where you live and work. Some places are very transgender friendly others, not so much.

I am an attorney as well, although I've only been practicing for 7 years. I have found that in my field and specialization, it really doesn't matter what name or gender appears at the bottom of the pleadings, but rather the content of the writing. The only places I have worked at for others were as a judicial clerk, and at a legal aid clinic. One thing I have found is that the legal aid clinic went out of their way to out my transgendered colleagues in order to aggrandize themselves and show how 'open-minded' they were. Frankly, this is why I remained closeted throughout my entire stay there.

A funny story though. I wrote a declaration (sworn statement) on items that I had personal knowledge on. I used the name on my bar card (male), but every single pronoun that I referred to myself in was female. My supervising attorney said "You used 'she' and 'her' to refer to yourself." I blurted out (what I thought was under my breath) "wishful thinking, I guess." and slapped my hand to my mouth and turned the deepest red. Thankfully, my supervisor, an old-school lesbian, never mentioned it again.

I remember we had a firm-wide retreat where one of the lectures was on 'gender awareness and sensitivity'. As a part of this exercise, we were told to stand in a position in the room. Those who identified as female on the East Wall, and those who identified as male on the other wall. Then it was who identifies as homosexual or heterosexual on the North-South wall spectrum. I remember looking at the (trans) dude and said "I am not outing myself to you, or anyone else in this firm. This is on a need to know basis, and you don't need to know." and sat in the dead center of the room. Of course, the cat-calls from both sides was apparent (I also considered the fact that I am the only conservative in the firm), and in the single coolest thing that has ever happened to me with this, my supervising attorney sat down back to back with me, and said "he's right you know."

So, as far as welcoming goes, I guess I would have to say that I would prefer a workplace carry on business as usual, no matter how I present, or when I full-time. I figure the less disruption in the workplace the better.



No foul language
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Quote from: Leki on July 25, 2015, 08:52:43 AM
Is it possible to be a transsexual and have a high-paying successful career?

Most transsexuals I speak to are either unemployed or work minimum-wage jobs. Is there a brighter outlook for jobs?

Thanks

Yes. I have a very successful career.

I am one of three attorneys from my office that are actively litigating a high profile case in court. On Thursday one of the defense lawyers said I created some confusion in their firm when they noticed that the correspondence had changed from my old name to my new name.  They thought that maybe there was a husband and wife team in my office and it wasn't until I sent an e-mail to them to correct their proof of service documentation to reflect my correct name because of my name and gender change did they figured it out.  I had a good laugh with that one.

There really wasn't much disruption when I started full time.  I had a news crew documenting the frist couple of hours with some filiming of me and some of my co-workers. Other than that it's just been talking with the people I've worked with for years. All in all it has been really great.

Quote from: Sigyn on July 25, 2015, 05:32:00 PM
I am an attorney as well, although I've only been practicing for 7 years. I have found that in my field and specialization, it really doesn't matter what name or gender appears at the bottom of the pleadings, but rather the content of the writing. 

So, as far as welcoming goes, I guess I would have to say that I would prefer a workplace carry on business as usual, no matter how I present, or when I full-time. I figure the less disruption in the workplace the better.

Quote from: Jessie Ann on July 26, 2015, 02:05:29 AM
I am one of three attorneys from my office that are actively litigating a high profile case in court. On Thursday one of the defense lawyers said I created some confusion in their firm when they noticed that the correspondence had changed from my old name to my new name.  They thought that maybe there was a husband and wife team in my office and it wasn't until I sent an e-mail to them to correct their proof of service documentation to reflect my correct name because of my name and gender change did they figured it out.  I had a good laugh with that one.

There really wasn't much disruption when I started full time.  I had a news crew documenting the frist couple of hours with some filiming of me and some of my co-workers. Other than that it's just been talking with the people I've worked with for years. All in all it has been really great.

That's great. How long did it take for your State Bar/Licensing organization to change your name/gender to your bar number (I'm also assuming you had your name changed through the court and sent them the judgment)?

I'm a Pathologist. I came out on the job with a staff of over 30 and a lot of professional colleagues and of course patients. The impact? Basically zero. I was a 'male' pathologist, I'm now a female pathologist. Oh there has been an impact, I now get the doors held open for me by male colleagues.

Oh and I get to hold my female patients' babies and say GooGah :laugh:

I'm a full-time public servant (law, justice, welfare areas) who transitioned at work earlier this year. Effect on employment - none. This is in Australia (NSW - New South Wales) where the police (who I have a lot of contact with) have a very strict policy and guidelines on dealing with/working with trans persons.

Quote from: Cindy on July 26, 2015, 03:00:44 AM
I'm a Pathologist. I came out on the job with a staff of over 30 and a lot of professional colleagues and of course patients. The impact? Basically zero. I was a 'male' pathologist, I'm now a female pathologist. Oh there has been an impact, I now get the doors held open for me by male colleagues.

Oh and I get to hold my female patients' babies and say GooGah :laugh:

Considering that You are pathologist, I am dreaded to ask in what condition Your patients usually are delivered...

P.S. Oh, well, looked that up - so it's not all about autopsies, solving mysterious crimes and other interesting and glamourous CSI-type stuff (the only types of pathologists I come across in my job).
I even feel a wee bit disappointed ;).

Quote from: ♡ Emily ♡ on July 26, 2015, 04:02:28 AM

Quote from: Cindy on July 26, 2015, 03:00:44 AM
I'm a Pathologist. I came out on the job with a staff of over 30 and a lot of professional colleagues and of course patients. The impact? Basically zero. I was a 'male' pathologist, I'm now a female pathologist. Oh there has been an impact, I now get the doors held open for me by male colleagues.

Oh and I get to hold my female patients' babies and say GooGah :laugh:

Considering that You are pathologist, I am dreaded to ask in what condition Your patients usually are delivered...

Unfortunately, in my particular speciality one or other has leukaemia or a similar syndrome. I'm an hematopathologist. Pathologists look after the living, as well as helping the dead.

Quote from: Leki on July 25, 2015, 08:52:43 AM
Is it possible to be a transsexual and have a high-paying successful career?

Most transsexuals I speak to are either unemployed or work minimum-wage jobs. Is there a brighter outlook for jobs?

Thanks

Absolutely. Work for a tech company. I attend IU -Bloomington, which is filled with trans people, and all of us either major in (a) gender studies or (b) CS, like myself. The outlook seems to be good. I have an ftm friend who plays bassoon, and is really good at it to the point that he plays alongside the master's students here. Moreover, earlier this summer, I worked at a job that would have brought in around 30k with no education requirements, and this was in the South. There are no limits -- even if trans. The obstacles are just a bit more pronounced.

Personally, I can approve that having a professional career while being trans is not mutual exclusive.

For example, I´m a Legal Counsel in the Financial Industry, negotiating ISDA, and GMRA, and several other derivatives related agreements. I´m transitioning at work, I´m out at work and everyone is just nice and supportive, my boss in particular. Everything that really counts are my efforts and my results at work. Me being a professional. That´s exactly what my boss told me, alongside several other things I won´t share here  ::).  As long as I´m happy with myself and I´m doing my job as good as I´ve ever done it,  I will have access to every possible support and resources. Looking back just a few months, reminding myself of the self-loathing prior to coming out, it seems absolutely unnecessary now. However, I´m fully aware that I´m in a very fortunate situation given the circumstances other trans persons encounter, especially my trans sisters encounter, and yes, I consider myself very lucky with my personal situation.

I work for a medium-sized city as a bus driver...transitioned about 3 years after being hired, but I have no doubt I would've still been hired as long as I had the same test scores and interview results. (I was the first person they called out of 30 "survivors" of the application process--over 500 applicants for an estimated 3 openings).

I make...umm...a bit more than the average here in the Seattle area, and outstanding benefits. Personally, I would never work in the private sector, have had nothing but bad luck with finding honest employers. (Of course, I don't have a degree or any fancy schmancy papers LOL)

I have met and know many successful fully transitioned transwomen and transmen, doctors, engineers, lawyers, IT, etc.. Most have transitioned on the job. Keeping a job can be challenging. Fear of me loosing my income and benefits keep me from taking any sort of chances. Fortunately I am one of the lucky ones. I am not (yet) a member of the Transition or Die club.

I am an engineer in a very niche field. Where I work I have demonstrated time and time again just how much money I can help them make on both new designs and keeping stuff going out the door smoothly. I have about a 20 year history with them. Yet, in spite of working in a state where trans people have protections, the obligatory World Class we don't discriminate.... policy, etc., I know from being a top management position if I cause more trouble then I am worth I am out of there. Only a PHB will say or put in writing being trans as the reason

I'm a hospitality consultant for bars and restaurants. If I weren't living in one of the most expensive cities in the United States, I'd be very well off financially. Prior to this, I worked in higher education and as a police officer. I transitioned in my current position and have had absolutely no issues in the workplace.

My advice would be to figure out what you're really good at, and do it better than other people. It is hard to get rid of someone that truly earns their keep.

HI I am a Test Equipment Calibration Engineer for A large Multi National company as well as working in a Mainly masculine environment I also Transitioned in the Job mine is a fairly essential job and we are fairly well respected so being Trans is not a reason to have to take a poorly paid Job .If you have a skill use it

I would just like to add the following additional information. Bear in mind that I transitioned about 15 years ago and things were far different than they are today.

I was doing well in a job and working on my transition off to the side. When I came almost to the day of hitting full time I was fired from my job. No I didn't sue and I didn't want to. Instead I kept my focus back on finishing my transition and landing a new job. I was out of work for a few months but it wasn't that bad to be honest.

My income was like a roller coaster when I went through my transition. It was up, then it went down, then it went back up again. It was the price I needed to pay at the time. Despite the fear of a sudden job loss, I will say in retrospect it was one of the best things to ever happen to me ever. I was able to start over fresh, post name change and just apply for a job without a big song and dance about the transition.

When I completed my transition, I will say in all honesty, I felt "cured" if you can call it that. I no longer needed to think about it every day. With that last obstacle gone, I have to say I have really succeeded beyond my wildest dreams.

So yes I have a successful career (very actually) and like everything else it had it's up and downs. It's how I handled the down parts that makes the up parts more enjoyable later on.

I was an automotive engineer, but after transition at age 42 I went back to school and retrained as a social worker.  I wouldn't say the pay was great, but it was adequate.  At no time was I ever made to feel any different from other staff I was working with and I was respected for my ability and skills.

Transitioning made little difference to my job as a business consultant. I lost a couple of clients but that happens to all consultants so it may not have been trans related and I could not be bothered to investigate. My clients include small businesses, local businesses and well known businesses such as Umbro, Budget Rent-a-Car and Burtons (Arcadia).

Why are some trans people more successful than others? For the same reason that some people are more successful than others - determination, confidence and self-belief.

In the trans community we seem to have high levels of self-doubt, depression and low confidence because the "before transition" life damages many of us and some of us never quite seem to fully believe in themselves post-transition or during the process.

It helps if you can blend in as male or female as the bulk of the population is not non-binary or genderqueer, but confidence is the key. If you do not believe in yourself then why will anyone else believe in you?

I work in law enforcement in a Supervisory position. It's way better than minimum wage but not really high paying. It's good for me though, as others have said I would suppose it would depend on your definition of "decent" though. Also if you are having to support just you or others. What's decent for a single person is different for larger families.

Let me add my voice to this conversation.

I've been at my current position as a senior technical analyst for a large financial institution for fifteen years.  I transitioned on the job at seven years.  My transition was accepted without issue and in no way was I held back for my transition or new gender.  Indeed they were very helpful in ensuring that my transition was a success.

Yes, it can be done.  It is happening more and more.

-Sandy

I transitioned OTJ at my current job with nothing but warm reception.

I am a tech/engineering middle manager at a large, well known media company (television and digital media). I may be accused by outsiders of of having male privilege, but even through transition I had to endure stuff. And now as a woman I have to endure things like men in other areas of the building trying to chat me up. I mean some men are genuinely nice but some just aren't.

But the women in management and the team in general love me. Most of them anyway. Some I'm not so sure about but they will get used to me. The men are fine with me, actually not really treating me differently, just being careful of pronouns etc.

There are one or two men who don't say a thing to me now. Meh. No big loss. My rights are protected by city law and HR policy anyway.

Information Systems Auditor in the Internal Auditing Department of an large insurance company.   :police:

It's really interesting reading all this, there's a lot of seriously qualified people here and it looks like everyone's got a job.

Is there anyone qualified for a decent job who doesn't have one?

An option if one doesn't have a job, is to enroll in a college or university for a degree that is in high demand, with decent pay...ask your counselor when checking out degrees.

Don't go to the local-ish "technical schools" for dental assistant, office worker, etc. Their fees are often in the $10k-$30k range, and the jobs one qualifies for after completing the course is often pretty low relative to the cost (I've found it to be typically $10-$15/hour, which was ok at one time, but minimum wage is nearing that level in many places in the US)

Think math, engineering, IT/computer science, biology, chemistry, and teaching degrees. I'm sure there are many others that are good also (my interests are mostly in the sciences). Social degrees tend to not pay as much, but they (like teaching) tend to be very tolerant of diversity.

Don't do well in math or sciences? Take a few refresher courses, and motivate yourself to study. Unless you have a learning disability, the sciences are very logical and rational. (imho, not dissing others)

Apply for tuition assistance, housing on/near campus, ask about other assistance available to low-income people. And don't forget the community colleges! Much less expensive, and their credits do transfer to the bigger, more prestigious (and expensive) universities. (Community colleges offer the same classes that the "technical schools" do, but at a much lower cost...check it out, you'll see!)

Higher education is a good option...you can either sit on the street saying "Golly I wish I had a good paying job", or you can sit in the counselor's office deciding your future, and working toward it.

Just a thought.

Where do you want to be in 5 years?

I think attitude is everything.  When I started studying to be a social worker I was still struggling with the trauma of a recent rape as well as battling benzo addiction.  My tutors told me later that they were sure at first that I wasn't going to come back the next day, but somehow I always did.  The reason I kept coming back and finally graduated top equal of my class along with another amazing young woman who was a solo Mum was that I was determined to succeed.  I wasn't going to let the bigotted b@stards and the haters (including certain members of my own family) win out and name me trash, but most of all I did it for me.

As an engineering grad myself - there is a lot of math. That said, I love math. I was in the math olympiad in school and won a few awards, and won a distinction in the Canadian Mathematics Competition (Fermat contest). I joke that I do recreational math like people do recreational drugs. I get high from doing problems. :)

I went to NYU school of engineering which was called polytechnic university at that time. In my classes there were few women but a few of those were pretty darned good. As was I. There was this girl from Russia who I would always compete head to head with in friendly competition. You could see her steam up when I beat her test scores. :)

I always want to see more women in STEM, cisgender or transgender. If that interests you, then go for it. Help solve the world's tough problems.

I had a wonderful career as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, CRNA.  Working in surgery and especially obstetrics was a dream come true and I was able to assist in the most dramatic and intimate lives of women and babies.  Very well paid, I presented as an androgynous person and was likely considered to be gay and eventually came out trans. 

I must agree, however, that getting that job and nailing the interviews as a trans person is more challenging than keeping a job where non discrimination policies are enforced.

I'm a research scientist in computational physics/chemistry at an industry leader. I've started my transition pretty much at the same time I started the job itself ! I've been open about it to all my colleagues and have got nothing but support !


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You can be whatever you dream of being....or where life takes you.lol I worked as a cashier, sales girl, model, office manager, and marketing exec. It's hard to get into the professional world after modeling(clothes) but it can be done. I'd have done better than office management stuff if I'd gone to college...get your degrees girls!!lol hugs!


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I personally know quite a few transsexuals who hold decent jobs after their transition but I have to admit they are all exceptionally good at what they do, so I guess that helps. Hopefully my bosses will still appreciate my skills even after my coming out as much as they do now.

Hi,

I'm a senior scientist at a 100 billion dollar company.   I make more than most MDs.  However, I have more education then most MDs so it wasn't a gift.  Quite the opposite, it was a long term commitment and hard work.

I transitioned on the Job.  There have been a couple of bumps - people who don't accept.  As a result, I will be starting a new job with the same company in January - for more money.

Hugs,

Jen

Now, speaking to a few who have already posted that they hold a successful career......  Become a gold or platinum subscriber!  Susan's could use the money and there are some here who, in giving $5.00, gave a huge gift from the heart for the support that Susan's enables.  We, who have the good jobs, can do better. 

Corporate lawyer here, worked "Big Law" for 7 years and now have my own firm with 1-2 lawyers, 2 paralegals and 1 business development gal working for me.  Been on my own for 6 years.  I'm the rainmaker.  We have fortune 100/500 clients and mid-sized companies and startups too. 

I started professional transition this month and will be done by year end if there are no hiccups.

I have no protections, I'm the employer, my employees can quit.  I'm the firm, my clients can fire me.

I have no intention of giving up what I've built, I may have a decline at first but I intend to find new avenues for networking and to end up higher than I was before I transitioned.

We'll see....


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I finally got some job security and teach at a public university. With modest pay and lots of deductions (including mandatory double retirement, which hurts), I don't make quite enough at my regular job to meet my obligations. So I have a second (part-time) job and teach summers as well. Someday, I would like to own a house, but a single earner with an unexceptional income in Southern California is definitely swimming upstream on that goal.

I've had to pay my dues to get where I am, and where I am is not spectacular, especially considering my age. Still, many others are not as fortunate.

Quote from: JLT1 on July 28, 2015, 08:58:54 PM
Now, speaking to a few who have already posted that they hold a successful career......  Become a gold or platinum subscriber!  Susan's could use the money and there are some here who, in giving $5.00, gave a huge gift from the heart for the support that Susan's enables.  We, who have the good jobs, can do better.

Good point! 

Disclaimer:
I will say that I am a bronze subscriber and will add the caveat that I have two sons in college, and a daughter in high school, I am in grad school, and so is my wife.  So, silver and gold are not gonna happen. ;)

Oops! I don't think this thread is for me. I'm outta here...

Is Luxury Escort counted as 'decent job'? LOL!

Quote from: Evolving Beauty on July 29, 2015, 02:24:41 PM
Oops! I don't think this thread is for me. I'm outta here...

Is Luxury Escort counted as 'decent job'? LOL!

If you can hold your head up and be proud of it...and make about average per capita for your area (or better)...then yeah, I'd say it's good.

I've always thought that it'd be a good position for me (no pun intended...well...maybe a little LOL) if *somebody* found me attractive and charming enough to pay for my time "escorting" them.

Alas, that's not going to happen. The people I'd want as customers definitely have their pick for escort work...

Quote from: ainsley on July 29, 2015, 10:15:06 AM
Good point! 

Disclaimer:
I will say that I am a bronze subscriber and will add the caveat that I have two sons in college, and a daughter in high school, I am in grad school, and so is my wife.  So, silver and gold are not gonna happen. ;)

Yea,  that happens.  I'm 50ish and finally finished paying off my student loans last April.

Hugs,

Jen

Quote from: JLT1 on July 29, 2015, 07:35:18 PM
Yea,  that happens.  I'm 50ish and finally finished paying off my student loans last April.

Hugs,

Jen

I will be 73 when my student loans get paid off. I'm under $100k now though!

Yes, I can relate on the loans.  However, my truck cost more than my student loans currently are (hey, we all have our priorities. :D ).  I got my undergrad 100% reimbursed from my previous employer, and went to grad school for much of it @ 75% off because I was also an employee.  Since I left I had to start paying full price to finish. :(

I got a full merit based scholarship. No loans is the best thing ever. Don't hate me. :)

Quote from: iKate on July 30, 2015, 09:30:25 AM
I got a full merit based scholarship. No loans is the best thing ever. Don't hate me. :)

Ugh, hate you  :D

Happy to be under $100k though! Working hard to get under $50k before the year is done.

I'm a professional engineer. But I haven't come out yet. We'll see...

So, do buy a cup of coffee each day for $5? Do you need this site?

How about sending the price of one cup of coffee a month to keep this place going?

Quote from: AnonyMs on July 27, 2015, 05:52:35 PM
It's really interesting reading all this, there's a lot of seriously qualified people here and it looks like everyone's got a job.

Is there anyone qualified for a decent job who doesn't have one?

*

I kept a low profile and maintained transsexual status private; my employers violated my privacy.

(a)  I had a promising personnel management career with a federal agency until my supervisor, the personnel manager, exposed my privacy to the entire office, led a force of ridicule against me, and initiated action to fire me because I am transsexual (1983).  She did not comprehend which way so she accused me of being a female working as a male; I was in my transition to female and was presenting as male at that employment.  The agency sought to demote me as retribution during my administrative process, but I quit after two years of ever-increasing harassment.  I filed and won my Un-employment Insurance claim on the basis of a 'hostile work environment'.  Not much consolation going from a good career to un-employment to mostly minimum wage and temp hire jobs for five subsequent years.  What was curious was that another agency employee at a different geographical location began her transition late during my separation process and faced no agency opposition.  Subsequent temp company employers were reluctant to hire me except for clerical pool.  I found ways to prove myself, achieve advancement, and then my past somehow stuck its head under the tent and I got fired again.  That was my experience from 1978 through 1990.

(b)  I moved to another state and attained employment at state government as a public assistance case manager - helping people apply for Food Stamps, AFDC, MedicAid, and other welfare programs.  Peace was short-lived.  Within 18 months, my supervisor came to me at the water fountain one day and told me, 'I'm gonna get you.'  I was not sure what she meant, but I feared it was again about my sex change that leaked from somewhere.  From that point on she targeted me with heavy cases and caseloads, she nit-picked my work as no other, and she openly berated me at meetings.  My co-workers in my immediate work unit and at other units expressed sympathies in private but told me that they feared speaking on my behalf and incurring the wrath of agency management who fully-supported this supervisor.  I quit.  A few years later, by a chance meeting, the woman who was the director of our office approached me and apologised that she lacked the integrity to take a stand against that out-of-control supervisor's misbehaviour against me; this former director admitted she accepted that supervisor's lies besmirching my work.  This transpired from 1990 through 1993.

(c)  I re-employed with the state government later during 1993 and eventually promoted twice while appointed to a position at a third state agency.  I became a top employee:  I had been achieving superior performance, was awarded maximum bonus pay for my superior work each quarter, and was once chosen 'Employee of the Quarter' while employed from 1999 through the time of my untimely separation in 2008.  One day about 2006, an agency manager summoned me to her office and questioned me because my name appeared on that infamous SSA discrepancy list; SSA flipt me without explanation from Sharon and female to my male predecessor.  My employment security became erratic until my state agency fired me as a transsexual (2008) at the same time as that agency recognised my superior achievement in an agency-wide performance award.  I again fought this employer action through the government employee process - and won when my director admitted under oath at least three times during my questioning that he conspired to commit federal felonies in order to fire me.  With supposed victory at hand, my state agency instead refused to restore me to my position against the orders of the state directive.  I applied for Un-employment Insurance on the basis of their hostile work environment and again I won; the state agency admitted to UI to the same violations as in my appeal case.  More insidious was a blatant vow by my now-former employer who openly declared that I would never work again.  He kept his threat, I have not been able to secure employment since 2008.  I was about to go destitute so I filed for premature Social Security otherwise I would be homeless.  I still file job applications to test the waters and I still face denials/  Meanwhile my accusers remain on their jobs.

Last year was a disaster.  I was in deep depression through much of 2014.  While I was gone from home a short duration, burglars ransacked and stole personal belongings - including irreplaceable photography, my tapes and DVDs from my two TV shows, mementos, my years of medical records, and other items of value or of intimate regard.  My sister wrote to me in September 2014 that she wanted nothing more to do with me.  Lastly, I saw the demise of the community TV station where I worked a side career crewing studio TV programs and producing two of my own; this had been one primary source of my social life since 1986.

Rather than falling deeper, I began realising what I still had while taking stock of my life on a lonely Thanksgiving Day 2014 sharing dinner by tossing a cranberry to a squirrel at my backyard.  I was about as deep as I could be and the only thing left was myself climbing from my hole and doing something.

By this past Winter / Spring 2015 I accepted my fate and decided I would come out.  Guarding my privacy is no longer an issue as a barrier to employment since I am no longer part of that world of work that dinged me three crucial times for my mere presence as transsexual.

While I do not come out as a public exhibition forced to wear some kind of emblem on my lapel, I decided to make a web-site to chronicle my obstacles and my achievements; I decided to no longer take fear and deny my personal life.

I resumed drawing my political caricatures that I suspended last year; they are worth doing even if for only my own simple pleasure and amusement.  I restored a cartoon character that I created during 2nd Grade; I have an eye on developing it as a marketing concept; we'll see.

I ventured from home only four times all last year.  I now get out and about as much as four days or more each week during this year.  The Public Library sponsors professional training programs with free classes designed for people to develop their ideas into viable non-profit companies.  My goal is to try to establish my own non-profit company based upon one of more than a handfull of ideas suitable for such a venture.

I am trying to re-socialise beginning with other events at my local public library as a start.  I also joined a local transsexual group for support - a change from what I call my Rip van Winkle slumber when I lived my anonymity the past 35 years; or maybe I was being oblivious to the reality of the world around me.

It is curious that I completed many college psychology courses and held career jobs involving counselling, yet I did not live by comforting words of my own advice.

No, my current life is not perfect.  But nowadays I am finally enjoying it as never before because I shed my burden rather than allow it to suppress me.

*

Short answer:  Yes.

I own a consulting practice and it requires me to be very public and speak to large groups of executives, boards, politicians, etc.  The business does well and I am comfortable by my standards.

This all occurred after I came out at age 58.  Had a huge public administrative job leading an 8,000 emp. org. and was dismissed within 6 weeks after I announced my transition.  I immediately began to put the pieces back together and that was 2002. 

If you want to be successful professionally, it's very doable depending upon all the usual factors but not very much about being trans.  Becoming a woman may create some some barriers, but I refused to recognize most of them and pressed on because I knew I was someone who was successful. In fact, I have leveraged my status as trans to open a lot of doors and start thousands of wonderful conversions.

Why you  seem to meet so many people who aren't successful may have a lot to do with self-selection (and I don't mean you aren't or can't be successful).  Within 3 months of coming out I had several new T-friends who were making well over $100k/yr.  (I selected them as they did me.)  I also met lots of gals who were and had been struggling for months and years, sadly some still are - we have a very diverse community.

Looking back, I did what I always had done before (be positive, believe in people and say yes often).  Consequently, I was quickly successful again.

Take good care and be positive about yourself and the future (for many of us it's what you make of it),

R

Resounding yes. I am a tenured college counselor. I did not transition until year 4 of 5 in my current job. Working in education is different because it tends to be a more liberal environment anyway. I also had the added benefit of working with counselors. Most of whom are allies to the LGBTQ community. Without the support of colleagues and my students I wouldn't be the man I now am.

I'm a nurse. My earning potential just goes up so yes, it is possible to have a decent job.

No, not well-paid at all.
Lowest of the low.
What would people say  ::)
Still pursueing happiness :).

Quote from: Swayallday on September 02, 2015, 02:42:31 PM
No, not well-paid at all.
Lowest of the low.
What would people say  ::)
Still pursueing happiness :).

What is your educational background?

None. Quit school at 17 and started working.

Commerce
Economics-Languages
Graphical arts & Printing press
Chemistry - Organic
Chemistry - Process-operator

Tried again at 20 with chemistry.
Finished nothing, chemistry is moreso a hobby anyhow.  :-*

I'm too am an engineer. I had a successful career and usually commanded the highest pay wherever I worked. I am an overachiever, a workaholic, and a perfectionist. My stuff works and is always fully documented. There aren't enough hours in the work week. I'd love to stretch the hours from 24 to 42 in a day.

Although, with that said. Early on, I had a lot of problems in my professional arena. Even though I moved from Utah to California, I still met with some brutal discrimination once an employer found out from the previous employer that I was trans. I finally lost the history in my fourth job.

I retired at a young age and I do other stuff. I have hobbies, I do charitable work, I play in a community symphony orchestra, as well as write science fiction.

I think our society is much more open now than when I transitioned.

Cindi

Quote from: Cindi Jones on September 02, 2015, 04:26:56 PM
I'm too am an engineer. I had a successful career and usually commanded the highest pay wherever I worked. I am an overachiever, a workaholic, and a perfectionist. My stuff works and is always fully documented. There aren't enough hours in the work week. I'd love to stretch the hours from 24 to 42 in a day.

Although, with that said. Early on, I had a lot of problems in my professional arena. Even though I moved from Utah to California, I still met with some brutal discrimination once an employer found out from the previous employer that I was trans. I finally lost the history in my fourth job.

I retired at a young age and I do other stuff. I have hobbies, I do charitable work, I play in a community symphony orchestra, as well as write science fiction.

I think our society is much more open now than when I transitioned.

Cindi

Wow I love the way you are spending your retired days. That's what I want for myself. I'm only 33 though lol.

Quote from: Swayallday on September 02, 2015, 04:03:56 PM
None. Quit school at 17 and started working.

Commerce
Economics-Languages
Graphical arts & Printing press
Chemistry - Organic
Chemistry - Process-operator

Tried again at 20 with chemistry.
Finished nothing, chemistry is moreso a hobby anyhow.  :-*

Have you considered a degree or certificate from your local community college? There are great paying jobs you can get especially in the computer arena. Security and technology are huge right now. This is a stretch but if you like organic chemistry you may want to look into pharmacy. You can start as a pharmacy technician. Most drugstores do their own training or again a community college. I am a counselor at a CC so I'm a big advocate.

Quote from: Sharon Anne McC on September 01, 2015, 06:43:36 AM
No, my current life is not perfect.  But nowadays I am finally enjoying it as never before because I shed my burden rather than allow it to suppress me.

Thank you for sharing that. You've had a very difficult life and as I read it I feel it speak to my fears. I'm trying to avoid these sorts of problems by presenting male even though I've been on HRT for years, and I'm beginning to feeling pressure building up from all this hiding. That burden you speak of, I'm beginning to get sick of it.

Hi Sharon;
What a very sad story and time you have had. It reminds why I found it so hard as well back when I transitioned in the mid 80's.

Basically I had a senior Sales & Marketing role with an International IT Company and travelled the world doing Business Development and then during that last period with them of the two years between 1983-85 had broken up with my wife and separated over coming out as Transgender. I was very depressed and my work suffered and of course because of the HRT was putting on both weight and developing female curves such that Management were pointing out that I had to seriously lose weight (as my breasts were becoming quite obvious in the office asback then my HRT regime was much more aggressive than now). Eventually I lost my high paying job, although they feigned a downsizing but I knew the real reason.. With the support of some girlfriends  they persuaded me to transition to full time and I managed to pick up some small consulting jobs, but kept on getting rejected from any sort of career as a woman back in my profession. Then in the UK it was very hard being Transgender with just about anyone selling stories outing people to the News of the World. After a few months eking into my savings and with a mortgage to pay, a girlfriend suggested going back to college(and at the same time, my psych was pressuring me to go into some sort of "female type job" rather than a male oriented work) so I went to college and did a Secretarial & Shorthand course for 4 months full time.  I then started at a Temp Agency in Milton Keynes doing a wide range of Clerical and Secretarial jobs - No the money wasn't that great, funds were very tight, but I was full time and with the support of girlfriends - surviving and I at least had my house and small car. After about a year I landed a full time job as Secretary/Receptionist (but that meant being immaculately dressed each day as I was the first person that greeted people at the front door - so it was a smart skirt, blouse jacket, well manicured nails, perfect make-up high heels etc every day. At first it was hard work, but I loved every minute of it.  Eventually I got a promotion as a Departmental Manager's secretary and then got a job as Legal Secretary for a woman in a UK Bank.  By then I was still earning much less than I had in IT Sales. Then catastrophe struck. I got outed at work and lost my job. Luckily a couple that I had been having a Poly relationship took pity on me and I moved in with them  as otherwise I would have lost my house and probably ended up on the streets. Through their love and generosity  I survived until eventually out of the blue my "male self" was headhunted to a high flying (literally) well paid job back in my former career in Australia. It was a way out of the depression and a way forward. I thus pushed my female self back into my self until the major dysphoria broke out again in vengeance on the death of my mother 26 years later and through another major crisis. So yes it can be very tough, but there is no doubt that in many countries especially in the UK, society is much kinder now. In the UK, I know of a number of incredibly successful Transgender women (two who have had full SRS ands fully transitioned) that have very high paying jobs or very satisfying jobs and a number that have successfully transitioned on the job, unlike my attempts back in the UK 30 years ago!

I believe the ones you speak of being unemployed i can shed some light on

I was considered an early identifier back in 1990 at 16
I started dating and dressing and boom evicted from home
No shelter would take me social services told me to go sleep
Anywhere and they werent taking as they said
" we dont take people like you "
I only have bio 10
And i was in edmonton with a very very harsh winter arriving
Quicly
Winters easy hit -40 centigrade

No shelters no meal programs mo famiy no freinds
You wind up prey to sex predators for clean clothes
Bed food and than you find out that your worrh major money
And i got out to the coast by januaey to vancouver
Same story no agency or gov program touched me
Legal age is 19 and that means im atuck in that life for at
Least three years
Even though i had lots of cash i cant rent anywhere
When 19 came by i was so damaged that when i finally
Walked into a school to restart life i felt like i coulsnt relate
Kids smiled laughed had dreams fell in love
I was raped assaulted seen things no kid should
I ran back to where my skill qere relevant
I was hardened and cold ice cold and calculating
There i stayed until i was kisnappwd by my mother at 30 years of age
And brought 2400 km north to her new house in atlin lake
F:(-&;& did the town get a load of me
But than for the next three years i stared out a
Window at nothing probably in shock and trauma

Than i was moved farrjer but detransitioned by
Force
Started menail jobs in whitehorse for insulting pay
But than boom got hires in the minimg industry
And made 195 tax free a day for 5 years
And got offered to work sites with the boys
At 385 a day tax free and i jumped
Drove a skytrak forklifts rocktruxk skidsteer
And than dysphoria came back with a vengeance
And i let it ride
They put me back in camp kitxhens and fired me in
Four months
I had 7500 in bank drafts and was close to ffs in argentina
But my mom kicked me oht again in decembeer
Ans shelters refused me and my ffs fund evaporated
Had to flee to vancouver wirh skills that are useles
But i know one thing
Amd i am pretty and was blessed from
Firat transition so i got hips and look 20 years
Younger some days
And i job hunt hunt hunt hunt and get nothing
But life as a girl aint xheap so i do what i know
Best and make the best of it
Was not easy at all
But i worked throufh the year on the girl track
I always wear high end makeup electro near
Finished
And i promised myself tops year and a half
And its been that long
I retire out of sex work a few days ago
And getting srs by brassard in three weeks
Have a amazing loving caring empatjetic man
Who is very gentle
He lets me freak out and cry all nigjt or yell at him
And get anger out qnd he holds me while i am nightmaring
And when i recover from srs i am atill getting welfare
And get grants bursaries etc to go baxk to high school
Amd my bf will give me 200 a month for atayinf in school
Tjat means by the time dor college i have FFS!!!!
i want to become a nurse

This is one narrartice why some girls may not get a job
They can be to damaged from rejection and disnt have
What i did a man who told me daily i am beautifull
I matter i am of value and he wont gice up

In all of this i have suffered 28 broken or cracked bones
And i also have surciced pickton
He killed over 50 of us working girls
He had me and i should have been mailed
Home as a dna strand with most of my gf i
Worked with
Today i can still smile amd some days not
And when i walk everyone jumps out of my
Way when they see me " oh sh!/ its natasha!!! "

But it doesnt define me at all
It was something that i has to do

I get paid sometimes to tell my life
And i call it 25 for life
25 years of hell to have a life

So yes i am the transsexual with no job
But it means nothing because i aint effin
Scared of no man and they can taunt me in
School but when they get a load of me rheu to
Will jump out of my way when i come walking by

Now i define myself
And if i ever hear any of you putting down sex
Workers remember one day
Natasha will be your nurse!!!!
Hahahan

Quote from: natashaX on September 03, 2015, 04:51:19 AM
I believe the ones you speak of being unemployed i can shed some light on

I was considered an early identifier back in 1990 at 16
I started dating and dressing and boom evicted from home
No shelter would take me social services told me to go sleep
Anywhere and they werent taking as they said
" we dont take people like you "
I only have bio 10
And i was in edmonton with a very very harsh winter arriving
Quicly
Winters easy hit -40 centigrade

No shelters no meal programs mo famiy no freinds
You wind up prey to sex predators for clean clothes
Bed food and than you find out that your worrh major money
And i got out to the coast by januaey to vancouver
Same story no agency or gov program touched me
Legal age is 19 and that means im atuck in that life for at
Least three years
Even though i had lots of cash i cant rent anywhere
When 19 came by i was so damaged that when i finally
Walked into a school to restart life i felt like i coulsnt relate
Kids smiled laughed had dreams fell in love
I was raped assaulted seen things no kid should
I ran back to where my skill qere relevant
I was hardened and cold ice cold and calculating
There i stayed until i was kisnappwd by my mother at 30 years of age
And brought 2400 km north to her new house in atlin lake
F:(-&;& did the town get a load of me
But than for the next three years i stared out a
Window at nothing probably in shock and trauma

Than i was moved farrjer but detransitioned by
Force
Started menail jobs in whitehorse for insulting pay
But than boom got hires in the minimg industry
And made 195 tax free a day for 5 years
And got offered to work sites with the boys
At 385 a day tax free and i jumped
Drove a skytrak forklifts rocktruxk skidsteer
And than dysphoria came back with a vengeance
And i let it ride
They put me back in camp kitxhens and fired me in
Four months
I had 7500 in bank drafts and was close to ffs in argentina
But my mom kicked me oht again in decembeer
Ans shelters refused me and my ffs fund evaporated
Had to flee to vancouver wirh skills that are useles
But i know one thing
Amd i am pretty and was blessed from
Firat transition so i got hips and look 20 years
Younger some days
And i job hunt hunt hunt hunt and get nothing
But life as a girl aint xheap so i do what i know
Best and make the best of it
Was not easy at all
But i worked throufh the year on the girl track
I always wear high end makeup electro near
Finished
And i promised myself tops year and a half
And its been that long
I retire out of sex work a few days ago
And getting srs by brassard in three weeks
Have a amazing loving caring empatjetic man
Who is very gentle
He lets me freak out and cry all nigjt or yell at him
And get anger out qnd he holds me while i am nightmaring
And when i recover from srs i am atill getting welfare
And get grants bursaries etc to go baxk to high school
Amd my bf will give me 200 a month for atayinf in school
Tjat means by the time dor college i have FFS!!!!
i want to become a nurse

This is one narrartice why some girls may not get a job
They can be to damaged from rejection and disnt have
What i did a man who told me daily i am beautifull
I matter i am of value and he wont gice up

In all of this i have suffered 28 broken or cracked bones
And i also have surciced pickton
He killed over 50 of us working girls
He had me and i should have been mailed
Home as a dna strand with most of my gf i
Worked with
Today i can still smile amd some days not
And when i walk everyone jumps out of my
Way when they see me " oh sh!/ its natasha!!! "

But it doesnt define me at all
It was something that i has to do

I get paid sometimes to tell my life
And i call it 25 for life
25 years of hell to have a life

So yes i am the transsexual with no job
But it means nothing because i aint effin
Scared of no man and they can taunt me in
School but when they get a load of me rheu to
Will jump out of my way when i come walking by

Now i define myself
And if i ever hear any of you putting down sex
Workers remember one day
Natasha will be your nurse!!!!
Hahahan

My tears fall.

You are a strong woman

You have faced life as few know it

Many years ago with a needle in my arm and the gutter my bed
I decided that was not me.

I overcame my past, and there is no shame in my past and there is none in yours

The past has gone, the future is yours, and you will be a wonderful nurse.

There are a number of factors that can affect ones work life experiences Trans* or not and a lot of Trans* people have had very difficult journeys much more so than I and for that they have my deepest respect. I do not believe being Trans* eliminates the possibility of a high paying professional career however it makes the road more bumpy and challenging not unlike a lot of woman face in the work force  when they start to climb the corporate ladder for which I have seen and now experienced myself.

I have been very fortunate in that I was able to transition at work in a professional career role centered around Intellectual Property Management, Product and Project Management however it was in the Oil and Gas industry which is not known to be a tolerant industry to LGBT people however I manged. With the recent downturn as a result of oversupply and lack of demand I was laid off with thousands of other people this last February after 11 years. 30-50% staff reductions are not uncommon right now.  I was faced with the biggest challenge of my transition to date of finding a career job with no safety net of any kind as Erica which I have been living as since May 2014. I am just an average T-girl. I had to learn to interview and approach the job search as a female with no help after 25 years of never having to look for work. It took me 6 months which I am very fortunate considering the economy in my city to land a great job leading an IP management department in a brand new industry for which I had no network to rely on. I had the mantra of "keep moving forward" through all of the disappointments. I ended up landing a job by working the situation as anybody else would. It is taking people upwards of a year or longer to find something. So it is entirely possible and achievable however I would not expect a yellow brick road to be laid out for us anytime soon. I know of a few girls who are in professional job roles and doing really well; with a good work ethic, focus and passion you can get to your version of success :)

Good luck and keep moving forward !!!!

Hello Everyone, for the time being I still have a decent job.  Very sure if a trans. person had similar skill set this job could be theirs.   My Tweet while on the job: twitter.com/AnneEdwardz/status/639247801474396161
I do more than just drive.

Thank you,
Anne

I got my diploma of childrens services from tafe after finishing yr12 and have been working as a perminent casual childcare worker. Since then. I earn $25 / hour and are the only casual ch worker in my childcare centre so I get called in alot. I don't earn a tonne of money but it is good enough.

Uncertain if I can ever get one....pretty certain I don't even want one.
However, it has nothing to do with being transgender. It's just how I am.
Studying is absolute hell for me, and working is thrice as bad. Combine that with me being the type of person who always tries to find way to go around a problem instead of finding a solution for it (I can't help it, I do it by instinct) and you start to get the picture.

Quote from: FreyasRedemption on September 05, 2015, 04:56:17 AM
Uncertain if I can ever get one....pretty certain I don't even want one.
However, it has nothing to do with being transgender. It's just how I am.
Studying is absolute hell for me, and working is thrice as bad. Combine that with me being the type of person who always tries to find way to go around a problem instead of finding a solution for it (I can't help it, I do it by instinct) and you start to get the picture.

The trick to work is finding a profession you would do even if they didn't pay you to do it. That is how I feel about programmings, getting paid to have fun. Don't tell my boss ::)

I have tried every trick any trans person did
They all have the way to do it
Whether it's education or its passability  or the one that's the worst
The reason is they are a real ->-bleeped-<- and I'm not for some bs reason
Neither once has any of them actually realized that because they are
White or went to school the real reason or maybe they don't see that anyone Leah isn't
White and didn't go to university.
But I find over all I get nothing but derision  and insults because I can't get hired,
Your fake, your a transgender, not a woman, your lying
Well actually at the peak of mining industry I used to get 4895 dollar tax free checks
Do the math. You need to make as much ad 180 a year taxed,
And I don't know if me being trans is the issue or I'm not passable.
But I'm not a dumb girl, <not allowed> any of you and your education couldn't make what I made.
I drove with 20 tons on forks or in a box. So why can't I get a job?

https://youtu.be/Vh1oUoRXwgA
(https://youtu.be/Vh1oUoRXwgA)
This is how I used to go to work for two years and I've been flown to work daily,
I thought when  I came back to the cities that most idiots would realize that when I said
I need a job they sit up and notice. After all when someone says they know how to work and then make as
Much as ten of you they aren't messing around.
Sometimes I think I outclassed most humans.

I will never give up. And the reality that some woman think she is above me because I sold my body
Tells me that she's got issues. All woman did one way or another,
Welcome to womanhood ...,you <not allowed> your way there or you look pretty or you convince or you act,
But none have the successes at being a woman that I will ever have,
None will make the money in their entire life as I did in 7 years 
Now I live in peace. I don't give two bleep that I have no job,
I'll go to school , 
I will always Win. I learned the first game of a woman, use sex
And I am pro


Mod Edit- No profanity please. Also posts that are intended to insult or even degrade another person are against TOS 5, 9, and 10.  Anything that remotely that is against transgender is against TOS 9.

Quote from: FreyasRedemption on September 05, 2015, 04:56:17 AM
Uncertain if I can ever get one....pretty certain I don't even want one.
However, it has nothing to do with being transgender. It's just how I am.
Studying is absolute hell for me, and working is thrice as bad. Combine that with me being the type of person who always tries to get the picture.

Ah, but Freyas, you know this about yourself. You can pinpoint your own weaknesses. Many can't ever seem to do that. This means that you have taken the first step in changing the way you look at life and how to deal with its obstacles. One step at a time, hon.

Cindi

One poster said "attitude is everything" and they are totally right. I think many trans spend too much time bringing attention to themselves and their cause, and looking for ways to complain about discrimination. There is no reason if you are hard worker, keep a low profile, and don't bring too much attention to yourself that you shouldn't have a good job.

I am in my last year of Medical School, with residency to come... The speciality it looks like I am going into is not very well known for being open minded nor is it accepting for even cis-women to become doctors in this field.  That being said, this specialization as a doctor will put me in a good place financially once I am ready to transition :) 

Well done Ashley - you are one year ahead of me. Which country are you in? And what speciality do you hope to enter? From what you said I'd have to guess you want to be an Orthopod... because in the UK where I am thats the most macho speciality... I'm probably headed for GP land - but I have a few other options and I havent really decided yet.

Hi Jenny :) You pretty much nailed it! I am in the US... As I have already spent a lot of time in the OR with the docs, I can pretty much say without a doubt that once I transition it will cause a lot of waves (of course, it does anyways, anywhere you do it).  I have already been exposed to my fair share of transphobic comments despite not being out, simply because Surgeons, surgical techs, and nurses love commenting on "Caitlyn Jenner" and other subjects very ignorantly.  I feel like I have some idea what I am getting into.  That being said, there are many surgical based doctors that have transitioned that give me hope despite the hardships; reading about none other than Dr. Christine McGinn's story is extremely inspiring personally. Anyways, it is really good to know another girl that is going through pretty much the same thing... I think we made good choices even if there is some hardship :)

Quote from: Ashley Allison on September 20, 2015, 12:14:44 PM
Hi Jenny :) You pretty much nailed it! I am in the US... As I have already spent a lot of time in the OR with the docs, I can pretty much say without a doubt that once I transition it will cause a lot of waves (of course, it does anyways, anywhere you do it).  I have already been exposed to my fair share of transphobic comments despite not being out, simply because Surgeons, surgical techs, and nurses love commenting on "Caitlyn Jenner" and other subjects very ignorantly.  I feel like I have some idea what I am getting into.  That being said, there are many surgical based doctors that have transitioned that give me hope despite the hardships; reading about none other than Dr. Christine McGinn's story is extremely inspiring personally. Anyways, it is really good to know another girl that is going through pretty much the same thing... I think we made good choices even if there is some hardship :)

Well I dont have those problems because I was already 30 years postop when I was selected for training so they cant really say anything... and if they did I'd give as good as I got! I'm not secretive about my background at all...

Ok now here's the really funny part - in the UK the leading orthopod is Sarah Muirhead-Allwood - she is literally the top woman and has operated on our Royal Family. Now if you google her it wont take you long to learn that she is one of our sisters. So hold your head high - you're in august and distinguised company.

I had one once  ;) Well not exactly decent but it came with reasonable pay and a uniform. In fact lots of people with better jobs seem to want to do what I did. I'm not sure why, but they seem to think it's some sort of way out of a humdrum existence.

It was fine to begin with. Except it wasn't. Then it got worse. I was shut in an office by a burly senior who tried everything he could to be physically intimidating. Including shouting in my face that I wasn't fit for anything including being male. Strangely he did question my gender in there. But what am I to say? Apparently he was a lovely bloke. As was someone of much higher rank who assaulted me in a work car park. He didn't like something about me using one of the spaces so slammed a car door on my arm.  :( Someone else falsified a supervisor's signature in order to attempt to blame me for his poor standards of work, like he tried to make out I should have been doing something of his? That didn't go anywhere, luckily for me, however the result of me reporting it was further exclusion for me and no action against him. The same individual caused a member of the public to complain. He tried to pretend that I was the one behind it, until I produced evidence that I wasn't even there!!! Again my colleague was slapped on the back and the whole thing treated as a joke. I received no apology for the pretty sustained verbal attack I received prior to the truth coming out. I was shifted around different places, given the worst jobs, insulted and so on.

I had to put up with constant comments and snide remarks about how I looked, my behaviour, mannerisms and so on. There was constant social exclusion, outright bullying and the odd sense of never feeling comfortable with certain colleagues.  :( Finally I was driven to make a few pathetic little goes at suicide, but I couldn't even go through with that.

Things are better now, yay!! I've got an all right job but it's just normal office stuff. On the plus side my colleagues are really friendly.  :)

My previous experiences have in some ways made me stronger. I've learned to appreciate that there are plenty of good people and a few bad ones. At least now I can tell the difference!!! I still have a fairly intense distrust of men, especially a group of males sort of mentality. Day to day it doesn't matter but lots of men still make me feel uncomfortable. I know I shouldn't, but when you've ben hurt it never quite goes away.

Here's something really ironic lol... That job? My little visit to the abyss? I wasn't even that bad at it to be fair. I wasn't great at certain aspects - but then I had more to deal with arguably, such as my own colleagues intentionally making things harder for me. However there were little bits here and there that I was fine with, little bits that most of the others couldn't do or considered beneath them. Part of me, the little bit, wishes that at least some of them miss me. I don't miss them.

In real life I'm about half-way through my first novel so aiming to become a professional writer eventually. I'd love to do magazines and things as well.  :)

Quote from: ToniB on July 27, 2015, 04:56:18 AM
HI I am a Test Equipment Calibration Engineer for A large Multi National company as well as working in a Mainly masculine environment I also Transitioned in the Job mine is a fairly essential job and we are fairly well respected so being Trans is not a reason to have to take a poorly paid Job .If you have a skill use it

I don't really know what my skills are though, that is why I have this problem.

I am friendly, hard-working, fairly well organised.

Quote from: Beth Andrea on July 27, 2015, 07:55:49 PM
An option if one doesn't have a job, is to enroll in a college or university for a degree that is in high demand, with decent pay...ask your counselor when checking out degrees.

Don't go to the local-ish "technical schools" for dental assistant, office worker, etc. Their fees are often in the $10k-$30k range, and the jobs one qualifies for after completing the course is often pretty low relative to the cost (I've found it to be typically $10-$15/hour, which was ok at one time, but minimum wage is nearing that level in many places in the US)

Think math, engineering, IT/computer science, biology, chemistry, and teaching degrees. I'm sure there are many others that are good also (my interests are mostly in the sciences). Social degrees tend to not pay as much, but they (like teaching) tend to be very tolerant of diversity.

Don't do well in math or sciences? Take a few refresher courses, and motivate yourself to study. Unless you have a learning disability, the sciences are very logical and rational. (imho, not dissing others)

Apply for tuition assistance, housing on/near campus, ask about other assistance available to low-income people. And don't forget the community colleges! Much less expensive, and their credits do transfer to the bigger, more prestigious (and expensive) universities. (Community colleges offer the same classes that the "technical schools" do, but at a much lower cost...check it out, you'll see!)

Higher education is a good option...you can either sit on the street saying "Golly I wish I had a good paying job", or you can sit in the counselor's office deciding your future, and working toward it.

Just a thought.

Where do you want to be in 5 years?

I have already been in higher education. I have a degree in psychology. I have been to see a careers advisor and it was ->-bleeped-<-, I am in no better position now.

Quote from: januarysunshine on July 28, 2015, 02:14:08 PM
You can be whatever you dream of being....or where life takes you.lol I worked as a cashier, sales girl, model, office manager, and marketing exec. It's hard to get into the professional world after modeling(clothes) but it can be done. I'd have done better than office management stuff if I'd gone to college...get your degrees girls!!lol hugs!


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Quote from: Leki on September 21, 2015, 03:00:07 PM
I don't really know what my skills are though, that is why I have this problem.

I am friendly, hard-working, fairly well organised.

.... and very negative.

Read all the responses of other transitioners. They show what can be achieve and yet you scream "false" at them or tell them it cannot be done when they are actually doing it.

I employ people and I always look for enthusiasm and determination as well as qualifications.  I never hire a well qualified "downer" because they drag down those around them. I would rather hire an under qualified person with a positive outlook and train them up. I have done it before

Cultivate a positive outlook. It takes work but it can be done and it will really help you. It will also help you see opportunities that you would otherwise miss. When you find yourself being negative just say to yourself "stop! I need to break this habit"

It will take effort but the rewards justify the hard work.

Everybody has some kind of inner voice telling them what they like.
It is possible there might be some restraints, and some people who might try to hold others back.

Imo it also has to do with what people feel and if they do it, or if they adapt too much to others.

Rejennyrateds story is an example... she has a feeling for what she wants and tries to do it....

If there is no exact feeling for what to do, a way could be to look around.... and then try something...
taking it from there...

the state of the economy will not remain imo... it will get better...
there are still hardheads but people slowly come to the realization that cooperation and living in peace is a better way of living....

look for good examples who made it, who simply tried again...

well a degree in psychology could enable to work with people in all kinds of ways...
customer relations...
marketing...
you could aquaint a bit of knowledge and try in a field you'd like...

or you might try a practical field, and apply some knowledge there...

It really seems to me that there is a lot posturing here
Like I made so can you and here's the secret
I kind of suspect that either you really enjoyed male privelage before
Transition or had a career or maybe even had a house to sell.
But it's not  the same for everyone. Remember that.
Like where I live high school isn't free any more for adults.
So basically you all make some feel like losers when you pull
Out this right attitude crap. I guarantee not one of you have the right
Attitude to survive my life, given the suicide rate and all.
So cut it out please and tell the truths about it.

Quote from: natashaX on September 22, 2015, 07:55:22 PM
Out this right attitude crap. I guarantee not one of you have the right
Attitude to survive my life, given the suicide rate and all.
So cut it out please and tell the truths about it.

I did tell the truth. It is not my fault if you do not like it.

Locking this until people calm down