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India metro to give transgender staff housing after discrimination row | India metro to give transgender staff housing after discrimination row |
(35 minutes later) | |
A metro service in India has stepped in to provide accommodation for 23 transgender women it employed, after they could not find permanent housing. | A metro service in India has stepped in to provide accommodation for 23 transgender women it employed, after they could not find permanent housing. |
Nine transgender women employed with the Cochin metro had quit as they said no-one was willing to rent to them. | Nine transgender women employed with the Cochin metro had quit as they said no-one was willing to rent to them. |
A senior spokesperson for Cochin Metro told the BBC that they had decided to provide hostel accommodation and transport at a nominal fee. | A senior spokesperson for Cochin Metro told the BBC that they had decided to provide hostel accommodation and transport at a nominal fee. |
It is the first government agency to allot roles for transgender people. | It is the first government agency to allot roles for transgender people. |
Cochin Metro's Reshmi CR told the BBC that the company had asked the nine women who resigned to reconsider their decision, giving them until 5 July to decide. | Cochin Metro's Reshmi CR told the BBC that the company had asked the nine women who resigned to reconsider their decision, giving them until 5 July to decide. |
If they decided not to rejoin, she said that their positions would be filled by other members of the transgender community. | If they decided not to rejoin, she said that their positions would be filled by other members of the transgender community. |
The plight of the employees touched a chord in India, especially given that Cochin Metro employed them in the hope that it would pave the way for other firms to begin employing transgender people. | The plight of the employees touched a chord in India, especially given that Cochin Metro employed them in the hope that it would pave the way for other firms to begin employing transgender people. |
A video featuring all 23, in which they told people "not to pity them", was viewed more than one million times on social media. | |
The resignations came less than two weeks after the service was inaugurated. | The resignations came less than two weeks after the service was inaugurated. |
Amritha, one of the transgender women working with the metro, earlier described the struggle to get accommodation to BBC Tamil's Sivakumar Ulaganathan. | Amritha, one of the transgender women working with the metro, earlier described the struggle to get accommodation to BBC Tamil's Sivakumar Ulaganathan. |
''Many of us have stayed in private lodges and hotels so far, where we had to pay around 600 rupees [£7; $9] a day. That was unaffordable for us, given we only make around 9,000 rupees [£108; $139] every month," she said. | |
The new employees were ticket agents and cleaning staff. | The new employees were ticket agents and cleaning staff. |
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