Be Prepared! Know the Pregnancy Discrimination Act

Pregnancy is hard enough as it is. Many pregnant women need orchoose to work during their pregnancy. Unfortunately these womenhave the possible added stress of pregnancy discrimination. Pregnancy discrimination is less of a problem in today'sworkplace as it has been in the past, thanks in part to thePregnancy Discrimination Act. As any pregnant woman who haslooked for a job can tell you, pregnancy discrimination did notsimply disappear because it was made illegal. That it why it is very important for you to know the rights andprotections guaranteed to you by the Pregnancy Discriminationact. Being informed is your best defense. EmploymentThe pregnancy discrimination act is an amendment to Title VII ofthe Civil Rights Act of 1964. Basically, it protects you frombeing treated any differently by an employer than any othernon-pregnant woman. First of all, an employer cannot refuse to hire you based onyour pregnancy, as long as you are able to perform the majorfunctions of the job to which you are applying. Once you are hired, or if you already have a job when youbecome pregnant, you are protected from pregnancy discriminationin many ways. Your employer must allow you to work as long asyou are able to perform your job. Your employer is not allowedto require you to take mandatory maternity leave, or to preventyou from coming back to work as soon as you'd like, after thebaby's birth. If you are temporarily unable to perform your job due topregnancy, your employer must treat you the same as any othertemporarily disabled employee by providing modified tasks,alternative assignments, disability leave, or leave without pay. Health InsuranceAny health insurance provided by your employer must coverexpenses for pregnancy related conditions on the same basis ascosts for other medical conditions. Health insurance forexpenses from an abortion is not required, except in cases whereyour life is endangered. Your pregnancy related expenses should be reimbursed exactly asthose incurred for other medical conditions. The amount paid bythe insurance provider can only be limited to the same extent ascosts for other conditions. No increased or additionaldeductible can be imposed because of your pregnancy. BenefitsBenefits related to pregnancy cannot be limited to marriedemployees. If your employer provides any benefits to workers onleave, they must provide the same benefits for those on leavefor pregnancy related reasons. While you are pregnant, you mustbe treated the same as other employees for accrual of seniority,vacation calculation, pay increases, and temporary disabilitybenefits.Pregnancy discrimination will not go away anytime soon. Hopefully though, armed with this information, you can defendyourself from pregnancy discrimination and feel comfortable inyour workplace throughout your pregnancy.