Pregnancy is an exciting chapter of life. However, juggling the realities of working while caring for one’s health can feel daunting. It is important for workers to know that there are laws in place to support them and keep them attached to their employment during pregnancy.
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”)
- The PWFA is a federal law that gives workers the right to receive reasonable accommodations (see list of examples below) for pregnancy, childbirth recovery, and related medical conditions, including lactation, unless it would be an undue hardship on their employer (meaning it would be very difficult or expensive to provide).
- The PWFA also protects pregnant and postpartum workers from discrimination or retaliation for needing accommodations. Meaning, an employer may not fire a worker, or otherwise retaliate against them, for requesting accommodations under the law.
- All employees (including federal, state, and local employees) who work for an employer with 15 or more employees are covered under the PWFA. There is no waiting period to receive accommodations–workers can get reasonable accommodations as soon as they start work.
- Workers do not have to use the words “reasonable accommodation” or mention the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to request an accommodation from an employer. Let your employer or manager know that you need an adjustment due to your pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to start the process to find an accommodation.
The Louisiana Pregnancy Accommodation Law
- Similar to the federal PWFA, Louisiana’s state law covers workers who are employed at a business with more than 25 employees, and provides necessary reasonable accommodations if they have medical needs that cause limitations arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, as long as the accommodations would not impose an “undue hardship” on the employer. This law also applies to the awarding of a contract or subcontract for providing goods or services.
- Additionally, the law allows pregnant individuals to take a leave on account of pregnancy for a reasonable period of time, meaning six weeks for a healthy pregnancy and childbirth and up to four months if the employee experiences a disability related to the pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The employee shall be entitled to utilize any accrued annual leave during this period of time.
What are Reasonable Accommodations?
- A reasonable accommodation is a change to an employee’s work environment, job duties, or schedule that they need to perform their job while keeping safe and healthy.
- Examples include:
- Limiting or assistance with manual labor and lifting or climbing
- Temporary transfer to a less physically demanding or safer position
- Additional, longer, or more flexible breaks to drink water, eat, rest, or use the restroom
- Flexible/modified scheduling, such as for prenatal or postnatal doctor’s appointments or to accommodate morning sickness
- Leave or time off to recover from childbirth, even if the worker does not qualify for leave under other laws like the FMLA
- Lactation-related accommodation
- And more.
The Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”)
- The FMLA is a federal law that provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected time off (in a 12-month period) to:
- Care for a parent, child, or spouse with a serious health condition,
- Care for and bond with a newborn, adopted, or foster child recently placed with you, or
- Recover from your own serious health condition (including pregnancy).
- To be eligible for FMLA leave, a worker must either be: 1) a government employee or work for an employer who has 50 or more employees (within a 75-mile radius of each other), 2) have worked for the employer for at least one year, and 3) worked at least 1,250 hours in the past 12 months.
- If you need to take time off, under the FMLA you will need to request it at least 30 days before your leave begins, unless your need for leave is unexpected. In that case, you should let your boss know as soon as you’re able to.
Anti-Discrimination Laws
- The Pregnancy Discrimination Act makes it illegal for any employer in the U.S. with 15 or more employees to treat employees unfairly because they are pregnant, trying to get pregnant, or have experienced pregnancy loss.
- The Louisiana Employment Discrimination Law also bans discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions, and covers employers with more than 25 employees. Under the law, your employer must treat pregnant women the same as temporarily disabled employees in terms of taking sick leave or other accrued leave.
Need More Help?
- Call A Better Balance’s free, confidential legal helpline at 1-833-633-3222 or write to us at https://www.abetterbalance.org/get-help/.
