Planet Fitness drops woman after complaining about transgender woman in locker room

[Deberg_1990]

Agree or disagree?


MIDLAND, MI (WNEM) - It's a business that sells itself on being non-judgmental but Planet Fitness has allegedly revoked the membership of a woman for complaining.

Yvette Cormier, a member at the Midland location, says she had no idea what that meant until a few days ago.

"I was stunned and shocked. He looked like a man.. He did not look like a woman," Cormier said. Cormier is talking about a transgender woman who walked into the woman's locker room while she was getting undressed. She says she couldn't believe her eyes.

"This is very unprofessional. This is very scary," Cormier said.

Not knowing why the person was in the women's locker room, Cormier said she immediately complained to the front desk and eventually to corporate offices.

"They told me the same thing, that he was allowed in there because that's the sex he wants to be," Cormier said.

Cormier said she understands that some men self-identify as women and some women self-identify as men, but said the person looked like a man and that caught her off guard.

Cormier lost her membership for violating the company's no judgement zone policy.

Moving forward, Cormier said she isn't concerned with getting her membership back. Her concern now is to warn other women at this gym to make them aware of this policy, because she says Planet Fitness failed to warn her.

The company told TV5 that Cormier's concerns about the policy regarding gender identity was inappropriate and disruptive by complaining to other members at the gym.

Representatives with Planet Fitness issued this statement:

"Planet Fitness is committed to creating a non-intimidating, welcoming environment for our members. Our gender identity non-discrimination policy states that members and guests may use all gym facilities based on their sincere self-reported gender identity.

In expressing her concerns about the policy, the member in question exhibited behavior that club management deemed inappropriate and disruptive to other members, which is a violation of the membership agreement and as a result her membership was ccanceled"
Cormier said she had no idea that person was actually a transgender woman. She also said she had no idea Planet Fitness had a policy allowing transgender women to share locker rooms with women.

TV5 sat down with a well known member of the transgender community to get her take on how to avoid this issue moving forward.

Char Davenport is a professor at Saginaw Valley State University as well as Delta College. She's a prominent member of the transgender community. Davenport is also a transgender woman.

Davenport said she is not surprised by Cormier's reaction. At the same time she said she applauds Planet Fitness for understanding the needs of the transgender community.

According to Davenport, Planet Fitness and any other facility looking to support the transgender community, she insists they must have the proper facility so that supporting LGBT rights doesn't impose on those who may not have a full understanding of her community.

"Private showers and changing areas really would go a long way in resolving these issues," Davenport said.

Cormier said the issue is that Planet Fitness failed to warn her about the possibility they could be sharing a locker room with a member of the transgender community. Davenport feels pointing something like this out to customers could be construed as negative and again she said the proper facilities and changing areas make this issue a moot point.

In the end Davenport said she has no ill feeling towards Cormier, instead she said her concern is valid and most importantly, Davenport said it provides the opportunity for the public to learn more about the transgender community. Which hopefully will avoid a similar situation moving forward.

http://www.kctv5.com/story/28278233/...tity-complaint

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by mdchiefsfan

You would be right in your assumption. Do you even left, bro?

right?

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by CapsLockKey

She seems to be the only member who has a problem with it. Would have been easier to just take her business elsewhere instead of making a big stink about it. Sounds like she went beyond just making a complaint to ownership. Warn other members? If it's so obvious it's a dude they should have no issue seeing for themselves.

She probably is, since she said she didn't care about losing her membership.

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by Inspector

I have a home gym and invite ladies to use it all the time.

They almost never do and usually just end up getting restraining orders instead.

[Fish]

Ms. Delicate Sensibilities:

[BigRichard]

Originally Posted by CapsLockKey

She seems to be the only member who has a problem with it. Would have been easier to just take her business elsewhere instead of making a big stink about it. Sounds like she went beyond just making a complaint to ownership. Warn other members? If it's so obvious it's a dude they should have no issue seeing for themselves.

If they don't tell every female member when they sign up about the potential for something like that then I think it is BS. If they are warned and they still purchase the membership I would say that yes it should not be a big deal. I am guessing they don't. I think most people think they should only be seeing people of the same sex in their locker rooms and anything else is out of the norm.

If they are going that route they should just tell everyone that the lockers are co-ed.

[ping2000]

So Planet Fitness will cater to the .00000000002% of the population that is transgender gym goers and offend a large portion of its female members. Sounds like a politically correct feel good policy that is also an incredibly dumb-ass marketing strategy. Good luck with that.

[BucEyedPea]

I know I would never join a gym that had inclusive bathrooms. Perhaps there should be a third bathroom. Call it "Both", "Mixed Gender", or "Confused" or something. The former would be used at a place like Planet Fitness.

[BigRichard]

Originally Posted by ping2000

So Planet Fitness will cater to the .00000000002% of the population that is transgender gym goers and offend a large portion of its female members. Sounds like a politically correct feel good policy that is also an incredibly dumb-ass marketing strategy. Good luck with that.

Exactly

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by BigRichard

If they don't tell every female member when they sign up about the potential for something like that then I think it is BS. If they are warned and they still purchase the membership I would say that yes it should not be a big deal. I am guessing they don't. I think most people think they should only be seeing people of the same sex in their locker rooms and anything else is out of the norm.

If they are going that route they should just tell everyone that the lockers are co-ed.

That's what the lady complained about and I agree. It's kinda like not telling you the ingredients on a package. Have a right to know what your purchasing or give a refund. Full disclosure, especially since it's such not been a common practice.

Other places can advertise how they do it which will draw the right crowds for business. Everyone finds something. Win/win. Just not necessarily from a business success pov.
Someone will make more.

[CapsLockKey]

Originally Posted by BucEyedPea

She probably is, since she said she didn't care about losing her membership.

But she does care about getting on her soap box and her 15 minutes of fame by contacting a TV station about it. Maybe if she would have read the policies in the contract before signing it she could have avoided the whole situation in the first place.

It says right in the OP this is in their policies. If she chose not to read them, that's on her.

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by Fish

Ms. Delicate Sensibilities:

For someone claiming to not be judgmental, you can sure be VERY judgmental.
How 'bout you try and at least understand her position with some respect.

[stevieray]

Originally Posted by BucEyedPea

For someone claiming to not be judgmental, you can sure be VERY judgmental.
How 'bout you try and at least understand her position with some respect.

because anything goes, and how dare anyone judge that.

[BigRichard]

Originally Posted by CapsLockKey

But she does care about getting on her soap box and her 15 minutes of fame by contacting a TV station about it. Maybe if she would have read the policies in the contract before signing it she could have avoided the whole situation in the first place.

It says right in the OP this is in their policies. If she chose not to read them, that's on her.

Maybe when you practice a very unusual thing that might make many people uncomfortable you should make a much larger announcement other than sticking it in small writing in your agreement. And I don't think it specifically stated they would allow dudes in the woman's locker room. It is BS and your and idiot.

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by CapsLockKey

But she does care about getting on her soap box and her 15 minutes of fame by contacting a TV station about it.

So

Maybe if she would have read the policies in the contract before signing it she could have avoided the whole situation in the first place.

It's so uncommon why would anyone think to check for something like that in the fine print, particularly when those contracts are the usual standard boilerplate. This sort of change from the usual, needs more attention drawn to it. I don't call that enough information to be appropriately informed if it's buried in fine print.

Let's start with the symbols used on these bathrooms:
How are the bathrooms labeled? Why do they even have separate rooms. Why not just one room then? Seems inconsistent to me.

Sorry, but what you call her soap box is also called word-of-mouth advertising—the most powerful. She has every right to alert others too.

[Demonpenz]

she should never travel outside the U.S.