A labour arbitration committee in the southwestern province of Guizhou has rejected a claim from a transgender man that he was sacked because of his transgender status, his attorney Huang Sha told AFP.

The committee also rejected his demand for a written apology and ruled that the man had been fired because he lacked "adequate skills" for the sales job.

The employer was, however, ordered to pay the man his wages for the probation period in which he worked. ”We are disappointed with the result," Huang said.

The transgender man, identified only as "Mr C," in order to protect the privacy of his family and girlfriend, alleges that he was fired last year days into a new job at a branch of Ciming Checkup, a health services firm, after the staff there said he looked "like a lesbian" and might damage the company's reputation.

The incident took place in April 2015. At the time, Mr C informed local reporters that he had not listed his gender on the application form, but the company was aware of his "special gender situation."

"My sales job performance was in no way negatively affected by appearance. To fire me for this reason is to discriminate against me," he said, according to the AP.

The outraged Mr C met a lawyer at an LGBT legal workshop and decided to take action against the company. "At first I was worried about being insulted by the public," he said. "But I made the decision to stand up, because somebody needs to speak up for this group."