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CV NEWS FEED // A Wall Street Journal analysis article recently highlighted that Planet Fitness’ incoming CEO will most likely have to address the controversy about men using women’s locker rooms, even though the viral outrage over the controversy has subsided for now.
WSJ journalist Jennifer Maloney wrote on May 19 that Planet Fitness is still in the center of a “culture-war storm” that started in March, when a female gym user posted a photo of a man using the women’s locker room at an Alaska Planet Fitness location.
The male gym member identified as “transgender” and is seen in the photo shaving his facial hair in the locker room.
“The company revoked the membership of the woman who took the photo, saying she had violated the chain’s policy against taking photos of people in locker rooms,” Maloney explained, later writing of the company’s policies:
Under the Planet Fitness policy, a club may ask for evidence of a member’s gender if a serious concern about it is raised. If Planet Fitness confirms that a member has acted in bad faith and misrepresented their gender identity, the person’s membership may be terminated.
The post went viral, and a boycott of the company ensued. Maloney reported that Planet Fitness saw an increase in gym membership cancellations and a decrease in sign-ups, according to Planet Fitness Interim CEO Craig Benson.
Maloney wrote, “Sign-ups have since rebounded, but cancellations remain higher than usual, (Benson) said.”
The controversy has become less prominent in recent weeks, but Maloney noted that Planet Fitness chief financial officer Tom Fitzgerald said there is a chance the issue will resurface.
If or when that does happen, Colleen Keating, who was named the new Planet Fitness CEO in April, will be the one navigating the company through it.
Keating has previous experience in the hotel and home rental industries. She has served on InterContinental Hotels Group as both a top executive and as a member of the “global diversity and inclusion council,” Maloney reported.
Keating was later the CEO of home rental company FirstKey Homes. Maloney noted that Keating’s LinkedIn profile includes several pro-LGBT posts from her time with FirstKey.
