We have a few new hires, mostly Gen Z, and one of them goes by they/them pronouns. I heard them say that they don't want to work under their manager because he never addresses them with the right pronouns. I spoke to the manager about this, and he said he isn't doing it intentionally; he's just not used to using they/them as pronouns for a person. As a team player, I want the new hire to feel accepted, but also want them to understand that the manager just needs some time to get accustomed. How would you intervene?

Insane. People didn't even get my name right when I started working. I can't imagine being uncomfortable based on someone not using random pronouns that I decided to designate.

I’m struggling to understand why so many people are so offended and outraged at being asked to make a very small amount of effort to show basic respect to a very small group of people who have truly experienced more than their share of persecution in recent years. Trans and nonbinary people exist and have always existed. Biological sex is not a binary, there are real, proven, genetic variations and there are absolutely variations in how people experience gender. This is not a problem! We can all handle the tiny efforts needed to make everyone feel welcome and respected for who they are - and this goes beyond gender. For example, it is reasonable for people to expect their colleagues to pronounce their names correctly too, even if the name is unfamiliar and it requires effort to get it right. And just in case anyone is wondering, I am a cisgender woman (assigned female at birth, always identified as female), Gen X, from Texas.

I've noticed a lot of people struggle referring to someone as they/them. In my opinion it boils down to lack of information and mislead respect.

Basic anthropology teaches us that each generation brings upon a new change to society; and basic psychology tells us that humanity evolves or grows around this new change. Those who are adpatble, won't have issues following suit. However, some might refuse to evolve or have doubts which causes them to remain stagnant and misinformed.

Let's bring the conversation back a bit, remember when being gay was a taboo? How many battles had to be won before some change was actually made? Why? Because of those who refuse to evolve. Which makes me ask myself "why does it matter?" Does someone else's preference really matter to you and your life? No. But others lack this type of critical thinking, which is why to this day the battle of acceptance is ongoing.

Circling back to the main point. They/them pronouns. Someone who doesn't identify with either gender uses they/them. We as a society are so used to using gender to describe things, it's human nature. Even in other languages, in Spanish milk is a girl - la leche.
But as I said earlier, humans grow and evolve. We adapt, change and move forwards.

There's a big difference in refusing to accept it vs not understanding. If it's a case of not understanding, I use this example:
You're at a movie theater and someone left their keys on the floor.
You go to an employee and say "someone left their keys"
Congratulations, you just used androgenus pronons 👏🏻 You didn't know the gender so you used the neutral term, good job. It's kinda the same principle here, someone is telling you neither gender, so you use they/them.

As someone in Gen Z who hears about this issue all the time, I can guarantee that if you tell them that their manager is trying, and is not misgendering them intentionally, most people don't mind. Most Gen Zers don't really care as long as it's not intentional. We just want to be respected, and we understand it's a new concept for older people. I think the fact that you're making an effort is already a lot more reassuring than you think.

fire their asses ,and make a slogan they-them are banned

That new hire needs to be told that their randomly made up English terms to describe his or herself based on how they feel inside is not always going to be accepted every where. They need to honor others choice as they are wanting theirs honored and if the other person decides not to use those pronouns out of either ignorance or on purpose, its not mandatory. It cannot be forced. Try to gie them an example of something that could be forced on them that may be unpleasant. Its just life...get over it would be my choice of words but I'm not patient with that stuff.

I work in a company called Kind System, and the owner laughed and said I was insane when I mentioned I was part of the LGBT community,

There's no place for make believe in the work place

Give me something that is completely made up for $200 please.

Your inquiry seems to reflect a misunderstanding that can lead to individuals feeling excluded or distinct from their peers. The consequences of misgendering can lead to feelings of gender dysphoria. Given your response to the inquiry, it may be beneficial to seek assistance from your human resource professionals. The best approach will depend on your comfort level, your relationship with the leader, and whether the misgendering was intentional. People leadership is not easy, and yet, you want to mitigate the risk to the organization, whether unintentional or not.

I hope this is helpful!

I think it's rediculous to have to separate people because they choose to be called something not normal..they should be able to separate work from personal..I'm sorry but they all get special treatment and a lot of them don't even apply effort in doing the job they were hired for..I guess maybe I'm too old school..the way I was raised you are not a special case because you choose to be lesbian, gay or transgender..it should be treated like religion don't force it on anyone and don't expect special treatment because you want to be different..

They is really not professional. I wouldnt hire them. They is disruptive and unnecessary to the inclusivity.

Inclusive doesn't mean to include mentally ill person. It means to include women, asians, black people, russian, europe, arabs, african, disabled, etc.

You hire them meaning you buy their time & expertise. You have the right to choose whom you're working with

its a sad world these kids need to live in....all you have to do is look between your legs to know what you are !!!

THIS is a subject' that individuals are chatting about? WoW, like get in there and simply DO the job! #TIMEWASTED

I have a similar situation at my job and it was really bad when our first non-binary employee started because a few staff members just couldn't compute, But over time everyone has grown accustom to everyone's pronouns. I think it is up to the manager to make the connection with the employee to explain they are working on it. As a co-worker, gentle reminders to others when a slip up happens can be helpful. Good on you for looking out for your team!

You have to love this generation then you must ask yourself where the hell did I go wrong? I guess I am just one of the few people who is used to this generations fads I guess. I mean I had a long discussion with my kids about the pronoun stuff and I told all of them how I felt about it. I mean we all have the right to our opinions. My daughter decided to become a lesbian, here is the catch her girlfriend goes by HE...yea try to get that to catch on, on the daily...the only way to get through it is simple if they have a problem with the manager or their boss not calling them, them or they...simple solution..take it with a grain of salt BRO frfr not everyone is used to the pronoun thing I mean really our generation was he or she. We never had to ask someone what their pronouns were because there was only 2 a person could be. So that employee shouldn't get to offended they really should just grain of salt it. I mean heck I want to be called IT but ppl just can't catch on to IT haha...

If you value your corporate culture I'd suggest firing the Gen Z before their malignant narcissism has a chance to metastasize.

As someone that recently came from Starbucks, I understand the frustration. I am older and had to learn to change my habits for my entire team. The best advice I could give is to either have them apologize to the employee and explain that they will try to remember their preferences as long as they give them some grace (this is what I did with my team. Or mediate the conversation between them so they both understand each other’s perspective and have them both agree to work on it amicably. This is my advice.

just give me a name, If someone looking like a bruce tells me theyre called Kathy, i'm going to call her kathy. We're not stupid, we can see whats going on.

You deserved what you wanted: Name pronouns=brain-dead

I applaud you for reaching out for advice. And I appreciate all the comments and honesty on this post. My PERSONAL opinion on the situation is that I dont agree with the different pronouns. Now professionally I have encouraged the people involved to find a comfortable 3rd party they both agree on and sit down together and have an open professional conversation. As well I would encourage an apology from both parties. 1 for making the other feel uncomfortable and the 2nd person apologize for the misunderstanding on why it's not being done, Once they understand they will both work harder together. And they will have a stronger work relationship. Please get them together!
I dont not have any issue with the community or the people or the choices of the lgbtq+ community. I have an issue with the members who force it on others. Respect between all communities needs to be held to a high standard.
Good Luck!

I wouldn't intervene. It's not mission critical. Those two employees are both adults and can settle this amongst themselves. Neither of them is required to stay at that job.

And, personally... you don't get to choose your gender, it corresponds to what you were born with. If you want to cross dress I don't care, but I am NOT going to lie because truth offends you. Part of my job deals with dangerous things like electricity. I don't identify as a wire or a june bug, but you can bet electricity will still shock me or kill me. If I am willing to compromise the truth on something that can't hurt or kill, that shows my team that perhaps they can compromise the truth on something that *will* hurt or kill them. If anyone above me doesn't like that, they can find a new director.