June 07, 2015
U.S. Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania is co-sponsoring a bill that would give more protections to pregnant women in the workplace.
The bill, entitled the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, was introduced Thursday. If passed, it would prohibit employers from forcing pregnant women to leave their jobs and disallow discrimination against pregnant women for job opportunities due to "reasonable accommodations," such as related medical conditions.
“No worker should live in fear that her job is at risk simply because she’s pregnant,” Casey said in a press release. “This is commonsense legislation that will finally provide pregnant workers the comprehensive workplace protections they deserve.”
Kim Glovas of CBS Philly points out that the bill had been introduced by Casey twice before in 2012 and 2013, but now has Republican co-sponsors. Those Senators are Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Dean Heller of Nevada.
The legislation is supported by several civil rights groups, including the ACLU and the National Women's Law Center.
