For Immediate Release
April 8, 2016
LIXIL Corporation

LIXIL Conducts Attitude Survey on Use of Public Toilets
Among Sexual Minorities
Clarifying issues for improving toilets at workplaces, schools, and public facilities
Tokyo, Japan – LIXIL Corporation (“LIXIL”), a global leader in housing and building materials, products
and services, today announced that it has conducted a joint survey with the nonprofit organization
Nijiiro Diversity to assess the attitudes of sexual minorities toward public toilet use, with the objective ofclarifying the issues faced by LGBT and other sexual minorities concerning public toiletsi. LIXIL’s aim is toexamine the issues concerning conventional gender-specific toilets, to facilitate the creation of public
toilet spaces that reflect the needs of various users including sexual minorities, and that anyone can use
with ease and comfort.
The attitude survey was conducted as an online questionnaire covering 624 persons identifying as LGBTor other sexual minority, in their teens or older and residing in Japan. Approximately 70% of survey
respondents were transgenderii, including individuals with gender identity disorderiii, of whom morethan 60% reported feeling troubled or stressed using toilets in their workplaces or schools. An overview
of the survey results is as follows.
Overview of Survey Results
1. More than 60% of transgender individuals reported feeling troubled or stressed using toilets intheir workplaces or schools.
In many cases, for transgender respondents the gender indicated on the toilet they wanted to use
does not match the gender on their birth records or with which they identify, and more than 60%
reported feeling stressed using their workplace or school toilets.
2. There is a strong need for unisex toilets that can be used without concern for gender.
Nearly 40% of transgender respondents stated that if they were able to freely choose a toilet at theirworkplace, school, or a public facility, they would like to use unisex toilets that don’t differentiate bygender. In particular, looking just at FTX (female-to-X gender) respondents, those who were born
female but don’t identify as either male or female, more than 60% expressed a desire to use unisex
toilets, indicating a strong need for such facilities.
3. Some people wait to avoid using the toilet.
Among transgender respondents, on average 5.0% stated that they wait to use the toilet rather thanenter a facility at their school or workplace. By age group, this was most prevalent among persons intheir teens at 22.7%. Among all transgender respondents 25.4%, or one in four, reported suffering
inflammation of the bladder or other excretion-related problems, suggesting that stress over toilet
usage can lead to serious health problems.

LIXIL held a briefing session on April 4 to announce the results of the survey analysis. Participants askedquestions on methods to accommodate transgender persons in workplaces and other spaces, and wereable to share awareness of the issues with persons involved in designing public toilets.
LIXIL is focused on considering how best to accommodate the needs of a wide range of users, also
including wheelchair users, parents with infants, the elderly, ostomates and offers ideas for public toilets
easy for everyone to use. Looking ahead to the expected increase in foreign visitors to Japan with the2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, LIXIL will continue to work to meet the needs of a wide range ofusers, including LGBT persons and other sexual minorities, and for the further advancement of publictoilets.
■ About Nijiiro Diversity
The nonprofit organization (NPO) Nijiiro Diversity conducts
surveys, lectures, consulting, and other activities aimed atestablishing workplaces where LGBT persons and othersexual minorities can work with confidence.
-EndsAbout LIXIL
LIXIL Corporation is a global leader in housing and building materials products and services. The foundationof LIXIL’s success is our constant investment in technological innovation to improve the way we live.
Delivering core strengths in water, housing, building and kitchen technologies, our brand portfolio businesses
LIXIL, GROHE, American Standard Brands and Permasteelisa are leaders in the industries and regions in which
they operate. LIXIL produces some of the world’s most fundamental and innovative products and services,and our solutions are an integral part of some of the world’s most iconic and cutting-edge living and working
spaces. Operating in more than 150 countries, and employing more than 80,000 people, we bring together
function, quality and design to make people’s lives better, and more delightful – wherever they are.

i

“Public toilets” refers to toilets in offices, schools, commercial facilities, transportation facilities, and other public spaces.
“Transgender” is the common term for a person whose birth gender does not match the gender with which theyidentify (psychological gender).
iii“Gender identity disorder” is the medical term used when a transgender person requires medical support, indicating astrong desire to align one’s physical and social gender with psychological gender.
ii

2