Rarely, in this politically polarized time, do members of both parties, as well as Planned Parenthood and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, work together to enact a statute. Yet that is what happened with the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA).
The act passed by Congress in December 2022 fills a long-standing gap in employment-discrimination law. It requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees for “known limitations related to [] pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions” unless the accommodation poses undue hardship on the employer. Accommodations may include such things as light duty, additional bathroom breaks, and a stool to sit on. The act was intended to provide “a safe environment for pregnant women and their unborn children in the workplace.” In the words of PWFA co-sponsor Senator Bill Cassidy (R., La.), the law is “pro-mother” and “pro-baby.”
Another statute, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, was amended in 1978 to include “pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions” in its prohibition against sex discrimination. However, Congress intentionally withheld from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency charged with enforcing both Title VII and the PWFA, the power to issue binding regulations under Title VII. Instead, the EEOC issues only nonbinding guidance.
In contrast, Congress gave the EEOC rulemaking authority under the PWFA. The PWFA opened a door for EEOC to...
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