• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The U.S. campaigned to host the World Cup. Now soccer fans will trade their countries' train system for the U.S.'s 'D' rated infrastructure

2

The pig in the python: Baby Boomers are strangling the economy they built by refusing to move or retire

3

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

1

The U.S. campaigned to host the World Cup. Now soccer fans will trade their countries' train system for the U.S.'s 'D' rated infrastructure

2

The pig in the python: Baby Boomers are strangling the economy they built by refusing to move or retire

3

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Leadership

Barnes & Noble is latest retailer to face transgender discrimination lawsuit

Claire Zillman
By
Claire Zillman
Claire Zillman
Editor, Leadership
Down Arrow Button Icon
Claire Zillman
By
Claire Zillman
Claire Zillman
Editor, Leadership
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 7, 2015, 8:03 PM ET
A Barnes & Noble Inc. Store Ahead of Earnings Figures
Photograph by Bloomberg via Getty Images

Barnes & Noble is the latest retailer to face a discrimination lawsuit filed by a transgender employee.

On Wednesday, a transgender woman who had worked for Barnes & Noble from 2007 to 2013 sued the bookseller in California Superior Court in Orange County for discrimination and harassment.

The lawsuit comes nearly a month after a transgender woman filed a similar lawsuit against Forever 21, her former employer. In March, Saks Fifth Avenue settled a discrimination suit filed filed by a transgender ex-employee.

The case by Victoria Ramirez against Barnes & Noble stretches back to 2012, when Ramirez—who then went by the name Tyson—began taking female hormones to begin her gender transition. Ramirez began to dress as a women away from work but maintained a mostly male appearance at Barnes & Noble. At times she wore remnants of makeup to work. She also began painting her nails and growing out her hair.

Her manager at the time complained about Ramirez’s appearance and told her that she was upsetting customers, according to the complaint. The manager also emphasized that they worked in a “neighborhood store” and that Ramirez should “think of the children.”

In 2013, Ramirez finally told her manger that she was transitioning into a woman and that she wanted to present herself as one at work. According to the complaint, the manager told Ramirez that wearing makeup and appearing as a woman at work would make other Barnes & Noble employees lose respect for her position as a manger and as a leader. The manager forbid Ramirez from asking coworkers to call her by her female name, Victoria. The manager later said that Barnes & Noble would not allow Ramirez to use the store’s women’s restroom or wear skirts because it might make other employees or customers uncomfortable. She could only wear makeup if it wasn’t obvious, the manager said, and she couldn’t discuss her transition with coworkers unless the manager was present to ensure that no one felt sexually harassed.

“These unlawful conditions were intensely humiliating to [Ramirez],” the complaint says.

The manager eventually fired Ramirez after she called in sick because of what she described as stress-induced panic attacks.

Later, according to the complaint, a Barnes & Noble human resources representative told Ramirez that the company’s transition plan had been wrong. Furthermore, the representative offered to pass along the message that Ramirez wanted to return to work. But another HR representative eventually rejected Ramirez’s request for a job at a different Barnes & Noble location because—based on the assessment of Ramirez’s manager—Ramirez was an unfit employee and incapable of performing her duties, the complaint said.

When contacted by Fortune, Mary Ellen Keating, a spokeswoman for Barnes & Noble, emphasized the company’s longstanding support of transgender workers. She said it works directly with transitioning employees “to provide the support they need to feel comfortable in the workplace” and with their coworkers “to ensure they are educated about the transition process and what to expect.” Keating declined to comment specifically about Ramirez. But she added “we are very proud to employ a large number of transgender individuals, whom, like all employees are treated with dignity and respect.”

The string of lawsuits comes in the wake of the federal government’s expansion of rights for transgender employees.

In July, President Barack Obama issued an executive order prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating against workers based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Two months later, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission—the government agency that enforces the federal employment discrimination laws at private employers—filed its first-ever lawsuits to protect transgender workers under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. In late December, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that, going forward, the Justice Department would consider discrimination against transgender people as covered by the Civil Rights Act’s prohibition of sex discrimination.

For more about discrimination in the workplace, watch this Fortune video:

About the Author
Claire Zillman
By Claire ZillmanEditor, Leadership
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Claire Zillman is a senior editor at Fortune, overseeing leadership stories. 

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Leadership

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Leadership

As China bets its future on AI by cutting arts degrees, Jensen Huang says parents shouldn’t worry about what their kids study
AIJensen Huang
As China bets its future on AI by cutting arts degrees, Jensen Huang says parents shouldn’t worry about what their kids study
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 26, 2026
18 minutes ago
Largest study of AI hiring algorithms to date finds ‘clear racial disparities’ — over 25% of Black applicants tainted by bias
AIHiring
Largest study of AI hiring algorithms to date finds ‘clear racial disparities’ — over 25% of Black applicants tainted by bias
By Nick LichtenbergMay 26, 2026
27 minutes ago
andrew macdonald
AITech
Uber burned through its entire 2026 AI budget in four months. Now its COO is questioning whether it’s worth it
By Jake AngeloMay 26, 2026
53 minutes ago
Bill Winters, chief executive officer of Standard Chartered
SuccessJobs
Standard Chartered CEO apologizes for calling some workers ‘lower value human capital’ in AI push
By Emma BurleighMay 26, 2026
3 hours ago
Kevin O’Leary slams people who want work-life balance: ‘I hope they work for my competitors’
Successwork-life balance
Kevin O’Leary slams people who want work-life balance: ‘I hope they work for my competitors’
By Sydney LakeMay 26, 2026
3 hours ago
Jensen Huang waving
SuccessView from the C-Suite
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits he criticizes everything his 42,000-plus employees show him: ‘You can’t go a day without some criticism’
By Preston ForeMay 26, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

The U.S. campaigned to host the World Cup. Now soccer fans will trade their countries' train system for the U.S.'s 'D' rated infrastructure
Travel & Leisure
The U.S. campaigned to host the World Cup. Now soccer fans will trade their countries' train system for the U.S.'s 'D' rated infrastructure
By Catherina GioinoMay 25, 2026
1 day ago
The pig in the python: Baby Boomers are strangling the economy they built by refusing to move or retire
Economy
The pig in the python: Baby Boomers are strangling the economy they built by refusing to move or retire
By Nick LichtenbergMay 25, 2026
1 day ago
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
5 days ago
A billionaire and an A-list actor found refuge in a 37-home Florida neighborhood with armed guards—proof that privacy is now the ultimate luxury
Real Estate
A billionaire and an A-list actor found refuge in a 37-home Florida neighborhood with armed guards—proof that privacy is now the ultimate luxury
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 25, 2026
1 day ago
Elon Musk's best friend could make more than $100 billion from SpaceX's IPO. His firm is also owed billions by SpaceX
Investing
Elon Musk's best friend could make more than $100 billion from SpaceX's IPO. His firm is also owed billions by SpaceX
By Eva RoytburgMay 25, 2026
1 day ago
The Supreme Court handed Trump a Golden Chariot on tariffs — now he just has to take it
Commentary
The Supreme Court handed Trump a Golden Chariot on tariffs — now he just has to take it
By Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Steven TianMay 26, 2026
8 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.