How to Respond to Pregnancy Discrimination in the Workplace

Several laws protect pregnant and formerly pregnant workers in Pennsylvania. These laws prohibit numerous forms of pregnancy-based discrimination, and they allow employees to hold their employers fully accountable for violating the law.

What to Do if You are a Victim of Pregnancy Discrimination in Pennsylvania

With this in mind, how can (and should) you respond to pregnancy discrimination in the workplace? Here are three steps you should take promptly:

Step 1: Document Your Employer’s Discriminatory Practices

To the extent that you can, you should document your employer’s discriminatory practices. The more you can do to document the discrimination that you have experienced (or that you are continuing to experience), the better. Some of the ways you may be able to document pregnancy discrimination include:

• Keeping relevant documents you have received from your employer (i.e., your paystubs, your employer’s requests for information related to your pregnancy, and formal notices denying your requests for leave or reasonable accommodations).
• Keeping relevant communications from your employer (i.e., emails or other messages that either reference your pregnancy directly or that you believe are indicative of pregnancy discrimination).
• Taking detailed notes (i.e., writing down when you experienced discrimination and who was involved, the actions you have taken in response to the discrimination (if any), and any other facts that you believe may be relevant to your pregnancy discrimination claim).

Step 2: Learn About Pregnancy Discrimination Under Pennsylvania and Federal Law

Pregnancy discrimination can take many forms under Pennsylvania and federal law. As a result, even if you are researching your legal rights because of a specific form of pregnancy discrimination you experienced in the workplace, this might not be the only way that your employer has violated your legal rights.

For example, while state and federal laws prohibit overt acts of discrimination such as reassigning or terminating employees based on their pregnancy, employers in Pennsylvania are also prohibited from:

• Failing to provide a private location to express breastmilk;
• Refusing to approve disability leave for pregnant and formerly pregnant employees; and,
• Ignoring requests for necessary pregnancy-related accommodations, including even relatively minor accommodations such as additional time for restroom breaks.

Again, these are just examples. You can read our articles on pregnancy discrimination for more information.

Step 3: Hire a Lawyer to Help You Hold Your Employer Accountable

To ensure that you are fully asserting your legal rights and seeking all remedies to which you are legally entitled, you will want to speak with a lawyer promptly. A lawyer who has experience handling pregnancy discrimination claims in Pennsylvania will be able to help you take any and all legal action necessary to hold your employer accountable.

Do You Have a Pregnancy Discrimination Claim? Contact Us for a Free and Confidential Consultation Today

Do you need to know more about how to respond to pregnancy discrimination in the workplace? If so, we encourage you to contact us promptly for a free and confidential consultation. To speak with an experienced Philadelphia employment lawyer at Murphy Law Group, call us at 267-273-1054 or tell us how we can contact you online today.