Pregnancy Discrimination

Federal law, state laws, and many local laws prohibit discrimination based on pregnancy. If you are pregnant, your employer may not give you less favorable treatment, fewer opportunities, or terminate or refuse to hire you because of your pregnancy. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k). These laws may also protect you if your employer denies your maternity leave. This means your employer may not make employment decisions based on stereotypes or assumptions about pregnancy’s effect on your job performance, such as assumptions that pregnant workers generally are not committed to their jobs or assumptions that they are generally unable to perform certain physical tasks — even if the employer believes he or she is acting in your best interest.

The federal statute prohibiting discrimination based on sex, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, provides that employers must treat women who are affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions the same as other employees — including women — who are not pregnant but otherwise similar in their ability or inability to work. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k). If you are temporarily unable to perform some of your job duties because of pregnancy, your employer may not treat you less favorably than workers whose job performance is similarly restricted because of conditions other than pregnancy. For example, if an employer provides paid leave for other temporary medical conditions, the employer must provide you the same paid leave for pregnancy or related medical conditions. Similarly, if you are pregnant, your seniority and other benefits and privileges must accrue according to the same terms and conditions according to which they accrue for other people with temporary disabilities. 29 C.F.R. § 1604. (The EEOC has published helpful information about pregnancy discrimination here).

Our attorneys are nationally recognized as pregnancy discrimination experts and regularly publish and lecture on pregnancy discrimination legal issues.  To learn more, please see the firm’s “Know Your Rights” informational article on pregnancy discrimination.

If you have experienced pregnancy discrimination and you are thinking about taking action, or if you have already reported such discrimination and are facing retaliation, contact the experienced lawyers at Katz, Marshall & Banks for an evaluation of your case.