Discriminating against pregnant people is against the law. In fact, three federal laws within the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission protect job applicants and pregnant employees.
However, despite legal protections, a Bipartisan Policy Center survey found that one in five moms experience pregnancy discrimination in the workplace. The main reasons why employers discriminate may just surprise you:
The Financial Impact On Their Business
While proving pregnancy discrimination at work can sometimes be challenging, one of the most regularly cited reasons for a business discriminating against its pregnant employee is purely financial.
Employers often fear the financial impact of providing temporary adjustments and covering their health benefits. They also have concerns about the cost and difficulty of hiring temporary employees to cover the work of a pregnant employee.
Productivity Loss and Attendance Challenges
Pregnancy can involve medical appointments, restrictions, complications, and uncomfortable symptoms like nausea and fatigue. To many employers, these all spell productivity loss and an unreliable employee.
However, according to a 2014 Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis working paper that tracked the careers of 10,000 academic economists over 30 years, mothers of two or more children produced more research output than their childless female peers at every stage. While there is a temporary dip when children are young, their long-term performance exceeds that of their non-parent counterparts.
Stereotypes About Commitment
Many employers seem to think that once an employee becomes a parent, they’ll take more time off, be less committed, or leave entirely once they’ve had their baby. These assumptions are an unlawful form of discrimination.
The data also doesn’t support this assumption. According to a Justworks and Harris poll, 40% of parents with children under 18 work longer hours, compared with 31% of employees without children under 18.
Fear of the Costs of Making Extra Accommodations
A pregnant employee may need additional accommodations, and that’s the reality of bringing a child into the world. They may need more bathroom breaks, lifting restrictions, time off for medical appointments, and a sitting environment, rather than a standing one.
While most employers happily accommodate employees who need these accommodations, some don’t. They worry about the cost to their business both financially and in productivity terms.
However, it’s important to note that employers must provide a reasonable accommodation to a qualified employee’s or applicant’s limitations relating to their pregnancy under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) unless it will cause the employer an undue hardship.
Operational Pressures
An employer may worry about changes to their work schedule, finding replacement temporary workers, and navigating training and overtime. While these are valid concerns for an employer, that doesn’t make pregnancy discrimination lawful.
A forward-thinking approach can be all that’s required to mitigate operational pressures, such as:
- Cross-training other team members in critical tasks months in advance to build resilience
- Creating clear handover guides
- Exploring staffing agencies for qualified temps
Employers may have legitimate concerns about staffing or performance, but they can’t assume that pregnancy makes someone less capable or committed. Unfortunately, that’s the reality for around one in five mothers in the workplace. If you believe you’ve been discriminated against due to the reasons above or others, seek help from an experienced pregnancy discrimination attorney. They can listen to your experiences, provide advice, and help you understand your rights so you can keep working with confidence.