State Department provides counseling for misgendered employees affected by email pronoun controversy.

The State Department Offers Free Therapy to Misgendered Employees

The State Department is taking responsibility for a recent email glitch that caused many employees to feel hurt and upset. The glitch randomly assigned gender pronouns to staff, often assigning incorrect pronouns to individuals. The department is now offering free counseling to any employee who was affected by the mistake.

The Pronoun Glitch

On Thursday, many State Department employees were “triggered” by emails from colleagues that included random pronouns in the “from” line. The pronouns were randomly assigned, with men being given female pronouns and vice versa. The Washington Free Beacon first reported on the “pronoun glitch” in the department’s system.

Free Therapy for Affected Employees

The State Department’s Employee Consultation Service is available for any employee who feels hurt or upset as a result of the mistake. The department’s chief information officer, Kelly E. Fletcher, wrote in an internal email that the intent behind the feature was to make the system more inclusive and provide employees with options, not to make decisions for them. Fletcher also informed employees that the department is testing a new feature that will allow users to include their preferred pronouns in their Global Address List profile.

Future Solutions

During the test, the feature inadvertently went live, and a large number of employees had randomly assigned pronouns added to their profiles. In the future, employees will have the choice to pick their preferred pronouns. Fletcher expressed regret for the confusion and distress caused by the mistake.

Employee Reactions

State Department employees expressed shock and confusion by Thursday’s pronoun incident, with one source telling the Free Beacon, “This is distracting from the work that we are actually supposed to be doing. A lot of people here have been triggered today.” Associated Press reporter Matthew Lee also raised the issue during the department’s daily briefing, calling the mishap “ridiculous.”

The State Department is taking steps to ensure that this mistake does not happen again in the future.