Is Dear Sirs gender neutral?

At Thorntons, we are always considering ways that we can implement positive changes and that is why we have taken the decision to make a change to our salutations and we are waving goodbye to “Dear Sirs” and paving the way to a gender neutral salutation.

What is an alternative to Dear Sirs?

Alternative greetings “There are many other suitable alternatives to “Dear Sirs“,” said Ms O’Boyle. “Dear Mr/Ms Surname, Dear Colleague, Dear Counsel, A Chara, or Dear Position, i.e. Dear Managing Partner, Dear Principal, Dear Senior Associate etc. These are all alternatives and this is not an exhaustive list.”

How do you deal with the unknown gender of the recipient?

When I was taught how to write formal letters in the 80s/90s, the answer to how you deal with the unknown gender of the recipient is “Don’t”. We were taught that formal letters always start “Dear Sir” if you don’t know who will be receiving it. Not “Dear Sir/Madam”, not “To whom it may concern”, not “Hello”. Always “Dear Sir”.

Why can’t you greet non-binary people as non-gender-specific?

Our teachers acknowledged that this was not correct if the person receiving the letter was female (non-binary wasn’t on anyone’s radar then) but taught us that it was the standard convention because English does not have a way of making the greeting for letters non-gender-specific.

Is it okay to address a non binary person as Sir?

I am non binary, but would generally be okay if I was adressed as ‘Sir’. Some people would feel a complete lack of gender and would ultimately prefer Mx, but with most people you should just ask them.

Is there a way to respect non-binary people?

Your concern is definitely something that is changing in society right now – this movement with regards to respecting non-binary members. It’s certainly commendable for you to wish to address people respectfully using terms that don’t gender them unnecessarily.