Charlotte Burrows, Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner's (EEOC) joined On Point with Juandolyn Stokes to discuss the new law, The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) that protects pregnant women's rights in the workplace.
The PWFA is a new federal law, which goes into effect on June 27, 2023 and requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to a worker's known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation will cause the employer "undue hardship."
The PWFA protects the 56% of pregnant full-time workers and the 73% of those workers who return to work within 6 months after giving birth.
The new law protects pregnant women who may need a chair or stool to sit while working, additional bathroom breaks, water or food breaks as needed, flexible hours, to be excused from strenuous or potentially dangerous working conditions, and preferred parking.
According to Burrows, the new law applies to any employer with 15 or more employees in the private sector, or local, state, and federal government.
"You can have this benefit as long as you are pregnant and afterwards with qualifying conditions," says Burrows.
Before PWFA, many women were denied such things as seating accommodations, to take additional breaks, time off for medical reasons such as doctor's visits, or other requests.
Now with the PWFA, it is easier for women who are pregnant, childbirth, or related medical conditions to receive accommodations. These accommodations benefit the health of pregnant workers and their financial well being because it allows them to continue working to provide for their families without jeopardizing their health or their jobs.
Union and military workers are included in the PWFA, but independent contractors are not as they are not employees of the company. However, one cannot discriminate against a pregnant person.
For more information, please visit: EEOC.GOV or call: 800-669-40000. They are available to accept complaints of discrimination due to pregnancy matters.
