In June, the federal government as the nation’s largest employer will be legally required, like all private and public entities, to provide reasonable accommodations to pregnant employees in the workplace.
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act fills gaps in other anti-discrimination laws that protect employees from being treated differently because of a disability, which can sometimes arise in pregnancy.
Pregnancy is not considered a disability in itself, according to the language of the Americans with Disabilities Act, though some pregnancy-related conditions may fall under these protections. The new law aims to further commit employers to ensuring that pregnant workers do not slip through the cracks.
For the federal government, this shouldn’t be a big lift, as many of the possible accommodations could be low-cost or no-cost, though each arrangement should be tailored to the employee, the job and the situation surrounding the pregnancy, legal experts said.
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Chris Gantt-Sorenson of the Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd law firm said that, in theory, it could even be easier for the federal government to take up this law because it’s used to providing similar accommodations under the ADA.
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