One of the reasons that women often face discrimination at work is that employers are reluctant about them getting pregnant.
Unfortunately, some employers don’t think you should have a life and should devote yourself entirely to the company. This means that women are often denigrated for getting pregnant or even just thinking about having a family.
It’s one of the biggest pregnancy issues when you have uncertainty about your job. In a perfect world, your employer would be completely understanding, accommodations would be made, and your job waiting for you when you are ready to get back to work.
Although there are issues, there are also laws to protect you. In this article, we will go over some of the rights that you have as a pregnant woman.
You can’t be fired
If you are fired when you tell your boss you are pregnant, or you are threatened with being fired if you were to become pregnant then you need to find a labor lawyer. There is nothing remotely legal about that and you are protected under federal law and many state laws too.
There is the Family Leave Act that guarantees that you are able to take unpaid time off to care for yourself, a loved one, or have a child.
You are allowed up to twelve weeks of time before you would have to come to work again or make arrangements with your employer. They can’t fire you at any point even during the leave if they decide to not bring you back.
This is a very strongly enforced law and labor attorneys are always able to represent a pregnant woman and make the situation right.
The need to accommodate you
You may need to have your employer make some changes for you so you can still work while pregnant as long as you are physically able to do so. As long as these accommodations are reasonable they need to provide them.
An example would be to allow you to work from home so you don’t have to deal with a stressful commute while pregnant. Another would be to ask for a schedule that will allow you to make sure that you can see your doctor and any other issues that you would have.
In some cases, your work may even provide you with extra breaks, or even ergonomic furniture to keep you comfortable.
Retaliation
One thing to look out for is retaliation when your employer finds out that you’re pregnant. Many are smart enough to know that they can’t fire you so their plan is to make you miserable so that you quit instead.
They will do things like change your schedule, move your office or desk, or be generally very insulting. They will do what they can to make you as uncomfortable as possible. Resist the urge to quit and instead talk to a lawyer or your local or state labour office.
