What are gender-inclusive washrooms?
Gender-inclusive washrooms are toilet facilities that can be used by someone of any gender. They can be single-stall or multi-stall.1 They can also be referred to as universal washrooms and are often designed to be accessible for a range of needs, including but not limited to people with disabilities or families.2
Why are they important?
Transgender, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming people frequently experience harassment, and discrimination when gendered (men and women) washrooms are the only option available. This results in a wide range of people avoiding certain activities or facilities because they don’t feel safe.1,2,3
Safe and accessible washrooms for members of the McGill community and visitors to our facilities is a right that should be available to all. Improved access to gender-inclusive washrooms also helps set the tone for an inclusive campus. McGill is on course to further this aim.
Gender-inclusive washrooms at McGill
At McGill, the push for gender-inclusive washrooms dates back two decades. In 2004, a three-year project was initiated that grew out of recommendations made to the Joint Senate-Board Committee on Equity (JSBCE). This project resulted in designating nearly 40 existing washrooms gender-inclusive by June 2007.4 In 2012-13, a second push for gender-inclusive washrooms began. A recommendation that was approved by the JSBCE resulted in re-designating 200 single-stall washrooms as gender inclusive (see index below).4 Then in 2023, the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee (EDIC) approved the following amendment to the original resolution from 2007:
The University shall ensure that all single-stall washrooms in the university are gender inclusive, with according signage and interior door locks. The University must ensure that there is at least one multi-stall gender-inclusive washroom per building, and at least one gender-inclusive washroom (either single-stall or multi-stall) per floor. In new constructions, including new buildings and renovations of washrooms in existing buildings, the University must integrate the foregoing two points.5
Work is underway to increase the availability of gender-inclusive and accessible washrooms at McGill and improve signage for these facilities. The index in the next section identifies all gender-inclusive washrooms on both McGill campuses. For questions about gender-inclusive washrooms at McGill, please email equity@mcgill.ca.
Index of Gender-Inclusive Washrooms at McGill
References
1. Public Service Alliance of Canada / Alliance de la Foncion publique du Canada. (2018, March). Gender-Inclusive Washrooms in your Workplace: A Guide for Employees and Managers. PSAC/AFPC Website: Building Trans-Inclusive Workplaces. Link to document.
2. HCMA Architecture+Design. (2018). Designing for Inclusivity: Strategies for Universal Washrooms and Change Rooms in Community and Recreation Facilities. HCMA Architecture + Design News. Link to document.
3. Harwood-Jones, M., Martin, K., and Airton, Dr. L. (2021). Research and Recommendations on Gender-Inclusive Washrooms and Changerooms. Queen’s University Provost’s Action Group on Gender and Sexual Diversity. Link to document.
4. Clegg, A. (2023, September). A history of gender-inclusive washrooms. McGill Reporter. Link to document.
5. McGill University Joint-Board Senate Committee. (2023, March 22). D22-50 Report of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee Senate Meeting, Section I.4. McGill Senate Archives. Link to document.