Women Face Pregnancy Discrimination Despite Federal Protections

After being laid off, a woman has filed a lawsuit against her former employer claiming her firing was unfair and discriminatory. The suit alleges that she was fired not because of downsizing, but as retaliation for taking maternity leave twice in as many years.

The Family and Medical Leave Act guarantees women unpaid maternity leave and further state protections in New Hampshire allow women to return to their position (or a sufficiently similar one) when that leave ends. The woman in the suit took maternity leave in 2009 after receiving a good performance review months before. Shortly after she put in the request for maternity leave for her second pregnancy in early 2011, her performance review score fell dramatically under the reasoning that she had become unreliable.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reports that pregnancy discrimination cases have risen over the past 15 years nationwide. This presents a clear problem that needs creative solutions that are mutually beneficial and fair to families and employers.

Despite all of the laws in place designed to protect people from discrimination, it continues to be a prevalent problem across the nation.