What Is Pregnancy Discrimination?
According to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) of 1978, employers cannot discriminate against employees on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions. Pregnancy discrimination can come in many forms, including:
- Demoting pregnant women or women who have just returned after maternity leave.
- Refusing to consider a potential employee due to pregnancy.
- Making inappropriate comments about a woman’s pregnancy.
- Firing a worker because she is pregnant.
- Rejecting a woman for a raise or promotion she is qualified for because she is pregnant.
An employer can ask you if you are pregnant or might become pregnant in a job interview. However, since these questions can be interpreted as having discriminatory intent, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recommends employers avoid them.
Employers should treat pregnant employees as they would any other employee with a short-term disability. In general, you cannot be fired, rejected from a promotion, denied a job, forced to take leave or given fewer assignments based on pregnancy. If you can perform the needs of the job while pregnant, your employer cannot legally fire you.
Pregnancy harassment does not always come from your supervisor. The harasser can be male or female, a supervisor from another department, a coworker or even a client or customer.
The EEOC pregnancy discrimination laws do not prohibit discrimination based on parental status, although other laws do. Additionally, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides new parents with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for the birth and care of a new child.
