The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) is a new law that expands protections for pregnant workers throughout the country. This law requires covered employers to provide “reasonable accommodations” to a worker’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation will cause the employer an “undue hardship.” Let’s breakdown the facets of this law. Covered Employer In this … [Read more...]
New Minnesota Pregnancy Accommodations and Nursing Mother Rights Take Effect
Effective January 1, 2022, workplace protections for expectant and new parents in Minnesota were expanded. As a result of these expanded protections, Minnesota parents no longer have to face the difficult choice between pumping at work to feed their infants or getting paid. The expanded right to pregnancy accommodations also allows more Minnesotans to continue working safely during their pregnancies. The Minnesota Department of Labor and … [Read more...]
Minnesota Adds Employment Protections for Mothers and Expecting Mothers
As of January 1, 2022, Minnesota mothers and expecting mothers have increased protections in the workplace. These increased protections are due to an expansion of the Women’s Economic Security Act, which was initially enacted into law in 2014. Among other provisions, the Act originally expanded pregnancy and parental leave, allowed women to bring civil actions to enforce their right to express milk in the workplace, and prohibited employers … [Read more...]
Federal Laws that Prohibit Employment Discrimination
Federal employment discrimination laws, and related retaliation laws, date back to the post-Civil War Reconstruction period. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was the first federal law to prohibit race discrimination in employment. Five years later, the government passed the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 to enforce the provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment and provide redress for discriminatory action taken by the government, but few people brought claims … [Read more...]
Expanding Mothers’ Rights to Express Milk at Work
This past summer, Minnesota amended its nursing mothers statute to ensure greater access to breaks for expressing milk. While taking time to express milk at work was already protected, new mothers have continued to face backlash at work for taking breaks to express milk and for needing a private room in which to do so. The amended law should help clarify mothers’ rights and hopefully minimize some of the negative feedback from employers. … [Read more...]
