Chinese gay teacher files for unfair dismissal after being outed by parent of former pupil
Kindergarten teacher, 31, who was sacked after being seen at a gay charity event says he hopes his actions will teach his pupils about being brave
A Chinese kindergarten teacher who claims he was sacked for being gay is suing his former employer for unfair dismissal, and says one of the reasons he is pursuing the action is to teach his young charges the importance of being brave.
The case, which was accepted on Thursday by the arbitration committee in Qingdao, east China’s Shandong province, is a rare example of a Chinese employee turning to the legal system to pursue a claim of workplace discrimination on the basis of sexuality.
The 31-year-old said that on August 6 the administrators at his school told him they had been made aware of his homosexuality and that he should not come to work any more.
The man, who asked to be identified by the pseudonym Ming Jue, said in an interview that he had been working as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and had joined the Qingdao school earlier this year.
He said he took part in a gay charity event on August 5 and posted an article about it on his personal WeChat account.
A parent of one of his former pupils saw the piece and made it known to his current employers, he said.
“The kindergarten’s owner said I had publicly announced that I was gay, which went against the kindergarten’s philosophy,” Ming said. “I told him that was illegal and I would sue.”