Woman Alleges That Her Fake Penis Resulted In Unfair Firing From Factory Job

A Pennsylvania woman contemplating a gender change alleges that she was fired after wearing a prosthetic penis to her job, according to a civil rights lawsuit  filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court.

Pauline Davis, 45, charges that she was “unfairly terminated” from her position as a “packer/line inspector” at the J&J Snack Foods production plant. She contends that the company subjected her to “disparate and discriminatory treatment for being a female, and for being a female who identified with the male gender.”

According to her complaint, Davis “advised certain co-workers that she would be wearing the prosthetic device, and this information was reported to management.” After learning that Davis was packing a fake penis, J&J “retaliated against her and discriminated against her in that she was illegally terminated,” the lawsuit notes.

The prosthetic device, Davis reported, “was concealed and in no way interfered with the ability of Plaintiff to do her job.”

Supporting her discrimination claim, Davis contended that a male coworker who had “taken hormone treatments and wore female prosthetic devices and dressed in female clothing” was treated “more favorably” and not disciplined for “wearing a female prosthetic or female clothing.”

Davis’s federal lawsuit, which accuses J&J of retaliation and gender identity discrimination, seeks back pay and benefits, actual and punitive damages, and the reimbursement of her legal fees.