The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act has been law for over three years, guaranteeing pregnant and postpartum workers nationwide the right to the accommodations they need on the job to stay safe and healthy. Despite this, huge corporations like Amazon and Speedway are still forcing pregnant workers to risk their health and firing women for being pregnant. As we told the New York Times in a powerful new article, we’re fighting back.
The article centers the voices of three of A Better Balance’s clients—Jennifer, Kristina, and Arya—who bravely spoke out about the devastating impact of being forced out of their jobs while pregnant.
Jennifer, who worked in an Amazon warehouse in New York, needed to sit down periodically on the job after her pregnancy exacerbated her asthma and made her prone to lightheadedness when she stood for too long. She ultimately left work in an ambulance after experiencing severe abdominal pain. After she came back, she was fired for missing too much work.
Kristina, another Amazon warehouse worker from New York, had high blood pressure while pregnant, but continued working even when she felt dizzy and faint because her requests for lighter duty were denied. Her manager offered her extra breaks, but then Amazon punished her for taking them, putting her at risk of losing her job.
Arya, a Speedway employee from Ohio, was denied the ability to sit down on milk crates as she worked while pregnant. After she had a pregnancy-related medical emergency and needed to take a few days off, she was put on involuntary unpaid leave. She wasn’t able to get unemployment benefits, and was left without income right when her growing family needed it most. “I begged to keep working,” Arya told the Times. “It hurt to think that I wasn’t going to be able to provide for my kids.”
Each of these women was denied basic, easy-to-provide accommodations, support that should have been provided to them under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. Now, they’re bravely speaking out and sharing their stories to ensure that no women are forced to make the same impossible choices they faced.
Corporate giants can afford to accommodate their pregnant employees, but denying their legal rights sends a message that they’re above the law. We’re fighting back in the courts to hold these companies accountable and force them to change their practices, so they can no longer get away with abusing their pregnant employees in the dark.