Employers should be aware of two new laws, effective 2023:
Pregnancy discrimination is currently prohibited under 1.) the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), which modified Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and 2.) under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The PDA requires covered employers to treat employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth or related conditions the same as other similarly situated employees. The ADA, in turn, requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for certain conditions that qualify as a disability and are related to pregnancy, though it does not require any accommodation for many common pregnancy-related conditions that do not qualify as a disability. The PWFA adds an additional layer of protections to cover those pregnancy-related conditions that are not covered under the ADA.
The PWFA applies to employers with 15 or more employees, goes into effect June 27, 2023, and requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations for "the known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions of a qualified employee." Like the ADA, the standard applies "unless [a] covered entity demonstrates that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the business." The PWFA specifically prohibits employers from the following:
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