A transgender woman has claimed that a popular women’s only gym discriminated against her by denying her a membership – with the fitness chain now speaking out and seemingly standing by its decision.
The gymgoer recently shared an alleged correspondence with a Fernwood Fitness staff member on a transgender Reddit forum.
“I’m sorry, the Fernwood company policy is not inclusive of transgender women,” the text read.
“Fernwood offers membership only to biologically born females who identify as female. If you wish to discuss this further, please direct questions to our head office.”
The poster stated that they had “no idea” this was a known problem that they should have been aware of, and questioned whether it was against the law.
“I’ve not been ‘out’ for all that long, this is the first time discrimination has happened so directly and personally, (it) caught me off guard,” they explained.
Fernwood Fitness, a women’s only gym chain, has over 70 locations across Australia and more than 90,000 members.
The business operates on a franchised model, where franchisees own and operate individual Fernwood Fitness clubs.
It is not known at what exact location this issue occurred, but the poster lives in Victoria.
Fernwood responds
A spokesperson for Fernwood Fitness told news.com.au, “Fernwood Fitness proactively reached out to the person in question to acknowledge her as an individual and to talk about her experience.
“This outreach was made with genuine care, recognising the personal nature of her inquiry. Fernwood appreciates the courage it can take to inquire about a membership as a transgender woman and acknowledges that the experience may have been hurtful or disappointing. Fernwood Fitness extends its sincere empathy in response.
“At the same time, Fernwood Fitness has a responsibility to consider the needs of its broader member community,” they continued.
“A significant number of Fernwood Fitness members come from backgrounds where experiences of domestic violence, sexual assault, cultural beliefs, or religious practices necessitate access to female-only spaces based on sex.
“For many of these women, such spaces are not a preference but a requirement for their emotional and physical safety and for accessing the health and fitness services they need.
“This is not a reflection on personal identity, but rather a commitment to maintaining the integrity of a space that many women rely on.”
It is not suggested that the trans woman in question presented a domestic violence or sexual assault risk.
Is this allowed?
The post was inundated with comments from people who condemned the gym’s actions, echoing the author’s concerns about potential discrimination.
According to the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, it is unlawful for a registered organization in Australia to discriminate against a person on the grounds of their gender identity by refusing or failing to accept their application for membership.
Gender identity refers to a person’s internal sense of their own gender, without regard to the person’s designated sex at birth.
The Fernwood Fitness spokesperson stated that “Fernwood is currently reviewing all relevant legal requirements”.
Tickle vs. Giggle
It comes after a judge ruled that excluding transgender women from an app targeted at women is discriminatory in a major gender identity case in August last year.
Roxanne Tickle, a transgender woman, filed a federal lawsuit against the Giggle for Girls app and its founder, Sall Grover, alleging that she was banned from the networking platform due to her gender identity.
She was denied access to the app in September 2021, despite her birth certificate listing her as female and having undergone gender-affirming surgery in 2019.
The Federal Court found Grover and the Giggle app had “indirectly discriminated” against Ms Tickle and were ordered to pay $10,000 in legal fees.
Some commenters on the thread regarding Fernwood Fitness encouraged the trans woman to make a formal complaint to the Human Rights Commission and cite Tickle vs. Giggle as precedent.
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