Headscratcher of the Week: Firing may be linked to sex change

There are reasonable grounds to suspect a transgender woman was fired because of her sex change, according to a first-of-its-kind state ruling issued today by the Colorado Civil Rights Division.

The agency, charged with ensuring fair employment practices, said Intermountain Testing Co. of Greenwood Village may have discriminated illegally against Danielle Cornwell on the basis of her sex. The ruling lays groundwork that allows Cornwell to pursue legal action against the company.

Cornwell, who lives in Arvada, has spent most of her life as a man named David. In June 2005, she informed her employer that she planned to change her gender, a process that involved wearing women's clothes and changing her name.

A month later, Cornwell lost her job. She had worked more than 15 years for the company, which provides testing services to the construction and manufacturing industries.

The state agency didn't buy the company's claim that a slowdown in business prompted Cornwell's dismissal. The agency noted that Cornwell was one of the company's most senior and experienced technicians.

http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_4337916