Wisconsin man fired for refusing to use preferred pronouns appeals to Trump administration

SPECIFIC Spencer Wimmer a Wisconsin man is asking the Trump administration to intervene after he says he was fired for refusing to use preferred pronouns that conflict with a person s biological sex forcing him he alleges to choose between his livelihood and his faith While the Trump administration has moved to roll back DEI and gender ideology workplace requirements Wimmer a devout Christian argues that private citizens are still experiencing workplace discrimination tied to such policies Now after filing a religious discrimination complaint through the Wisconsin Institute for Law Liberty WILL to the Trump U S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission EEOC he reported he hopes President Donald Trump will do something about it In an interview with Fox News Digital Wimmer stated that he had worked hard to be a model employee during his five years at Generac and was in good standing with the company having received several positive performance reviews and promotions He revealed he expected to have a long fruitful career at the power equipment company That is until he was suddenly pulled into a meeting with human materials and confronted about his refusal to use someone's preferred pronouns 'UNLAWFUL DEI-MOTIVATED' WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION TO BE ROOTED OUT BY TRUMP'S NEW ACTING EEOC CHAIRWimmer says that his refusal to use preferred pronouns is rooted in his deeply held Biblical religious belief that there are only two genders and that a person cannot switch between one and the other He explained that he had prior experience working with transgender people and even had a good working relationship with one of his colleagues who was transgender However after Wimmer had to clarify with HR that he could not in good conscience use his transgender colleagues' preferred pronouns he was reprimanded for unprofessional conduct According to WILL the firm representing Wimmer Generac HR representatives described him that his request to refrain from using transgender pronouns on religious grounds did not make any sense Wimmer was issued a written disciplinary action note that stated refusal to refer to an employee subordinate by their preferred name pronouns is in violation of the company s Code of Business Conduct and No Harassment Framework After an entire month in which he commented he felt both targeted and bullied for his religious beliefs Wimmer was fired from his supervisor role at Generac Power Systems on April According to WILL he was not allowed to collect his personal belongings and was escorted out of the building Wimmer described the entire episode as heartbreaking THE SUPREME COURT APPEARS TO SIDE WITH PARENTS IN RELIGIOUS LIBERTY DISPUTE OVER STORYBOOKS I was urged to choose between my livelihood and my love for God and my beliefs noted Wimmer adding that it was very emotional having everything kind of ripped out from under me In its complaint to the EEOC WILL argues that Generac violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act which prohibits employment discrimination based on race color religion sex or national origin WILL asserts that Generac violated Wimmer s rights despite there being no harassment complaints filed against him Cara Tolliver an attorney with WILL communicated Fox News Digital that she believes his situation carries a broader significance that could impact Americans across the country She declared that Wimmer s development puts contemporary Supreme Court precedent set in a scenario called Groff v DeJoy to the test challenging the validity of an employer s compelled gender affirmation framework against an employee s sincerely held religious beliefs Employers I think have kind of become seemingly fixated on a lot of identity politics in the workplace including the topic of gender identity she commented But it's crucial to keep in mind that even where Title VII may provide specific protection to employees against workplace discrimination and harassment on the basis of a gender identity this does not supersede or eliminate Title VII protections against religious discrimination and the fact that religious discrimination is illegal SUPREME COURT ALLOWS TERMINATIONS OF INDEPENDENT AGENCY BOARD MEMBERS FOR NOWWimmer described Fox News Digital that he never solicited Generac to choose between me and then this other individual CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP There was absolutely a way for us to work together and have a compromise where we continue to have a professional milieu he disclosed Unfortunately there are individuals and there are organizations and structures in place that won't let you have compromise The fact that you have these beliefs is unacceptable to them So no amount of compromise is attainable In response to Fox News Digital's request for comment a spokesperson disclosed We do not comment on employment matters nor comment on pending litigation