On Thursday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D-N.Y.) signed a bill into law that bans so-called “gendered language” from being used in professional settings, including words such as “salesman.”
As reported by the Daily Caller, the newly-signed Senate Bill 536 declares that all uses of gender-specific language in the workplace be replaced with “gender-neutral” terminology, such as replacing “salesman” with “salesperson,” as well as replacing “he/him” and “she/her” pronouns with “their.”
“This legislation amends Real Property Tax Law Article 12-a to change the word salesman to salesperson,” the bill reads. “Further this legislation removes gendered language from the Article by removing references to ‘his or her’ in favor of ‘their,’ changes ‘himself’ to ‘themselves,’ as well as appropriate changes to variations of these words.”
In a statement celebrating the law’s passing, State Senator Anna Kaplan (D-N.Y.), who co-sponsored the bill, declared that “jobs have no gender, but unfortunately, many of our State’s laws still use gendered language when discussing professions that are practiced by people of all genders.”
“It’s important that we update these antiquated sections of the law to reflect our New York values and send a message that everyone, regardless of gender, should be able to pursue their passions,” Kaplan continued.
“People of all professions deserve to feel valued,” said State Assemblyman Danny O’Donnell, who sponsored the bill alongside Kaplan. “But gendered language in our real property law fails to adequately recognize the contributions of women and non-binary New Yorkers.”