Nonbinary Teacher Sues Catholic School for Not Acknowledging Gender Identity

An Australian nonbinary teacher at a Melbourne Catholic school has become a central figure in an anti-discrimination lawsuit after school officials refused to recognize the teacher’s gender identity, or use their correct pronouns and preferred title. The case has implications not only for Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS), but for LGBTQI+ employees at faith-based institutions all over Australia.

“It’s gut-wrenching every time I see a colleague get married, or there’s a change of name or title.” says Myka Sanders, a mathematics teacher at Sacred Heart Girls College, in an interview with the Guardian Australia. “They get to do it without any issue, but I’m not allowed to.”

Sanders uses they/them pronouns, and the title Mx. The school allows Sanders to use their chosen name, which appears on their birth certificate and ID. But since coming to the school in 2022, Sanders’s repeated requests to have their pronouns respected have been denied. Sanders says that school officials continued to deliberately use he/him pronouns in certain settings, such as in meeting minutes. In April 2024, Sanders received an email from MACS, claiming that titles like Mx. and gender neutral pronouns go “against Catholic anthropology.” 

The email goes on to say:

“This personal decision by a staff member has consequences that affect the whole school community, as the decision illustrates an ideological shift from Catholic teaching and an inability of the staff member to uphold the vision and mission of the Catholic school.”

Sanders tells the Guardian that even after receiving the email, they were still using Mx. in their email signature, but school officials requested they stop.

LGBTQI+ people in Victoria, the state where Melbourne is located, are protected from discrimination by the Equal Opportunity Act, a state law that prohibits religious employers and institutions from discriminating against someone based on their identity. Under this law, the Independent Education Union (IEU) took Sanders’s case to the Victoria civil and administrative tribunal.

However, the Sex Discrimination Act, a federal law in Australia, contains broad exemptions for religious schools. MACS successfully argued that their argument is based on this federal law, and therefore, the case can’t be heard in the Victorian tribunal. It will instead be heard in magistrate’s court in October.

“This fight goes beyond one educator.” says Kylie Busk, IEU Deputy General Secretary, to the Star Observer. 

Busk says that if the case were to be ruled in favor of MACS, “it could dismantle workplace protections for staff in faith-based organisations nationwide. The harm this causes both staff and students is undeniable.”

Busk also said that this case emphasizes the “urgent need for the federal government to deliver on its commitment to close legal loopholes.” 

Despite the ongoing legal action, Sanders says they love working at Sacred Heart. “I love working with the staff there. I love working with the students. It’s great, but it’s also really depressing, because I’m not allowed to be me,” Sanders told the Guardian. 

MACS issued a statement that all individuals in the school were “treated with respect”, and that Sanders “remains a valued member of staff.” 

David Brear, the General Secretary of IEU Victoria Tasmania, says that Sanders “is standing up not only for their own rights, but for the rights of everyone working for a faith-based employer.” 

–Lynnzee Dick, October 18, 2025