The law does not define “related medical conditions" very clearly. Image: Deutschlandreform/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffEmployees’ rights to workplace accommodations related to pregnancy under the upcoming Pregnant Workers Fairness Act are not fully defined in that law and might ultimately have to be determined through lawsuits, according to a Congressional Research Service analysis.
Passed as part of a late 2022 budget measure and set to take effect June 27, the PWFA includes new requirements that the federal government as well as larger private sector employers make “reasonable accommodations” for worker limitations arising from “pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.”
The law does not define what constitutes “related medical conditions,” the CRS said. However, it said that comparable provisions in civil rights law have been interpreted as applying to complications during pregnancy such as nausea and lifting restrictions, recovery from childbirth, and postpartum conditions. “Although there is some judicial variation, some courts have concluded that can also include fertility treatment, lactation, and abortion,” it said.
The term “reasonable accommodation” mirrors the Americans with Disabilities Act, the report said, and has been interpreted under that law to include, for pregnancy-related disabling conditions, accommodations such as light duty assignments and other changes to workplace rules or practices. “Whether a specific accommodation is required hinges on the facts of each case; reasonableness depends on the employee’s limitations and the workplace circumstances,” it said.
Also as under the ADA, the law exempts an employer from the duty to make a reasonable accommodation if it would place an “undue hardship” on business operations. “This also requires a case-by-case analysis, considering such factors as the nature and cost of the accommodation, the employer’s resources, and the size and function of its workforce,” it said.
However, the PWFA goes beyond the ADA in requiring accommodations for a pregnancy-related “known limitation,” which it defines as a “physical or mental condition related to, affected by, or arising out of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions . . . whether or not such condition meets the definition of disability.”
“While there is a substantial body of precedent applying the ADA’s standard defining “disability,” the scope of this new, “known limitation” standard may require further judicial elaboration,” the report said.
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