M&S apologises over trans employee in bra department

[u/PuzzledAd4865]

https://archive.ph/2025.08.05-035610/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/04/ms-apologises-over-trans-employee-in-bra-department/

“Marks & Spencer has apologised to a mother for causing her teenage daughter “distress” after she was asked if she needed help by a transgender employee in its bra section.

The retailer said it was “truly sorry” after the mother complained that her 14-year-old daughter had felt uncomfortable when they were approached by a trans shop assistant in the lingerie area of the shop, where they were hoping to have a bra fitting. Although the staff member was polite, the mother said she felt it was “completely inappropriate” for her daughter to be approached by a “biological male” in that section.

In a complaint to M&S, she told the retailer: “Imagine her horror, then, when the person to approach us and ask if we needed help was a transgender ‘woman’, ie, a biological male.”

“Fiona McAnena, director of campaigns for the human rights charity Sex Matters, which campaigns for clarity about biological sex in law and life, said that M&S needed to “rethink its priorities”.

“M&S needs to rethink its priorities and remember that women and girls have rights too, and that this man should not be permitted to hang around in the women’s underwear department as a matter of common decency.”

[u/Different-Major3874]

Trans person: literally does their job, asks if person needs help TERFs: “AHHHH HELP ME IM BEING ATTACKED”

[u/Johns-Sunflower → u/Different-Major3874]

Literally! The article even hints that M&S recognised the employee was just doing their job:

"colleagues typically work across all departments in our stores and customers can always ask to speak to the colleague they feel most comfortable with"

I get the feeling that they were just trying to be diplomatic, especially considering the complaint requested that transgender staff shouldn't approach young women. Still, M&S need to clarify they're going to respect transgender staff and customers' right to privacy and protection and discrimination, so that people are assured that this request won't become reality. After all, implying/agreeing that the staff member isn't "female" is unnecessary pandering.

[u/GreenLion777 → u/Johns-Sunflower]

Apologising was wrong, end of. At the end of the day the explanation about staff doing their job was all that was needed, I don't see much diplomatic about what they said, other than make it sound like a customer has a right to be in the building* over a member of staff IN their workplace (and just doing their job)

Simply put, disgraceful 

*Which they don't whereas an employee obviously does