Preparing to welcome a newborn child should be one of the most joyful moments of your life. However, navigating the maze of California maternity leave laws can be overwhelming for pregnant employees. Los Angeles-based employees have more rights than many US workers...
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Pregnancy Discrimination
New York Becomes First State To Require Paid Prenatal Care
Beginning Jan. 1, 2025, New York employers must offer pregnant workers 20 hours of paid prenatal leave in addition to other sick leave. During her 2024 State of the State address, Gov. Kathy Hochul promoted the change as a crucial step to help reduce maternal and...
New federal protections go into effect for pregnant workers
At the end of June, a federal law took effect providing new protections for pregnant and postpartum workers in the United States. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act requires employers to offer “reasonable accommodations” for employees affected by conditions related to...
What Does the “Silenced No More Act” Mean for California Workers?
Earlier this month, SB 331, more popularly known as the “Silenced No More Act,” passed the California state legislature. The bill will now proceed to Governor Gavin Newsom to be signed into law. If signed, the law will go into effect at the beginning of 2022,...
Will 2021 be a Record Year for Federal Pregnancy Discrimination Lawsuits?
Shockingly, data shows that the number of federal pregnancy discrimination lawsuits has been steadily increasing since 2016. 2021 is currently on-track to become another record year. Surprisingly, the increasing number of federal pregnancy discrimination lawsuits does...
How Would Passage of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Impact California’s Pregnant Employees?
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) was passed more than 40 years ago to protect the jobs and health of pregnant workers across the United States. However, the PDA’s vague language made it difficult for many women to secure necessary workplace accommodations or to...
Study: Workplace pregnancy bias affects mother’s and baby’s health
Workplace pregnancy discrimination is illegal. Yet, over the last 10 years, more than 50,000 pregnancy discrimination complaints have been filed with the EEOC and state human rights agencies. We know that pregnancy discrimination happens all too often, but a new study...
Why did The French Laundry face pregnancy discrimination claims?
Prominent chef Thomas Keller of the famed Michelin starred restaurants The French Laundry and Per Se was recently released from allegations of pregnancy discrimination from former employee Vanessa Scott-Allen. Scott-Allen was seeking $5 million in damages, claiming...
Pregnancy Discrimination Exposed at Large U.S. Companies
While both state and federal laws protect women against workplace discrimination based on pregnancy or birth, the reality is that companies of all sizes systematically ignore these laws to protect their bottom line. Even some of the bigger companies in the U.S. are...
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act Turns 40 – What’s Changed, What Hasn’t?
It’s been 40 years since members of the United States Congress signed into law legislation known as the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978. The passage of the PDA came on the heels of a U.S. Supreme Court decision in which the court sided with General Electric,...