Guidance Regarding Gender Identity and Inclusion in the Federal Workplace, March 31, 2023
Confidentiality and Privacy
All applicants and employees should have control, to the extent possible, over when, with whom, and how much they share about their gender identity or sex characteristics. Information about an applicant’s or employee’s gender identity or sex characteristics (such as the sex they were assigned at birth, medical history regarding gender or sex, or intersex status) is potentially sensitive personal information. Applicants and employees may choose to openly discuss their gender identity or sex characteristics or to keep those matters private, consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and policies. There may be instances where applicants or employees are required to disclose some aspects of this information, such as during a background security investigation that requires the listing of formerly-used names or during the onboarding process where sex or gender markers are captured. In protecting this information, the agency is responsible for complying with any applicable laws, regulations, and policies. For example, where the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. § 552a) applies, certain conditions must be met for disclosure of records contained in a system of records, and there are various other protections the agency would be responsible for implementing. Even if there is not otherwise a restriction on disclosure in applicable law, regulation, or policy, human resources personnel, managers, and coworkers should be aware of the potential sensitivity of gender identity or sex characteristics information and, to the extent possible, are advised to avoid disclosing such information, absent the consent of the individual.
Legal Name Change
Legal name changes related to gender identity are handled in the same way as any other legal name change in the employee’s Official Personnel Folder (OPF) and other employee records reflecting legal names (e.g., pay accounts and benefits documents). If an employee seeks to change their legal name throughout their entire OPF, including historical personnel records, instructions for doing so are set forth in OPM's Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping.
Names and Pronouns
All applicants and employees should be addressed by the names and pronouns they use to describe themselves. Using correct names and pronouns helps foster workplaces free of discrimination and harassment. This practice also creates an inclusive work environment where all applicants and employees are treated with dignity. The isolated
