Transgender Chicago Cubs employee accuses coworkers of assaulting her in lawsuit

The Chicago Cubs are being sued by a transgender employee who alleges the organization did not stop repeated harassed from her coworkers, including slurs and even physical assault.

The lawsuit, filed December 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, claims that the Cubs were "aware of the harassment but failed to take effective action to stop it." The plaintiff, identified as Ms. Christopher Cooper, states this created a "hostile work environment" that threatened her safety, prompting her to eventually file a police report.

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Cooper began working for the baseball team in February 2025, according to the suit, and immediately faced derogatory comments from her colleagues. She claims that her coworkers repeatedly misgendered her and called slurs such as "sissy," "f*ggot," "tr*nny," and "it," with one telling the others, "You know that’s a man, right? That’s not a woman."

Even coworkers who associated with Cooper faced harassment, the suit alleges, including a cisgender man who was told that his girlfriend "looks tr*nny too." Cooper and the man each submitted written statements requesting not to work with the employees making the comments, but were assigned with them "every day."

After reporting the harassment to Human Resources, Cooper claims that she was told "Maybe this job isn’t a good fit for you." The organization then limited her access to HR’s services, requiring her to make formal appointments while others could walk in as desired.

The threats began after Cooper's department manager allegedly discussed her HR complaints in emails to other employees, including her supervisor. After the leak, another coworker "made threats of physical violence" if he discovered who had mentioned him in the complaints, stating that he and his family would wait outside of Cubs facilities and attack them. Cooper filed a police report out of fear for her safety, but the coworker was not disciplined

The threats escalated in September, when Cooper says a friend of her supervisor physically pushed her at a train station as they were leaving work. Cooper later overheard the colleague bragging to others about assaulting her, and still no one was disciplined.

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Cooper has filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which granted her a Notice of Right to Sue. She accuses the Cubs of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prevents discrimination based on gender identity in employment.

Cooper has asked for a trial by jury, seeking back pay and front pay, as well as compensation for loss of benefits, attorneys’ fees, and punitive damages.