Employment is critical to women’s equality, but women still experience employment discrimination in both obvious and indirect ways.
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Some women are fired or otherwise penalized for becoming pregnant.
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Some women are pushed out of work by being denied reasonable job modifications during their pregnancies.
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Some new mothers are denied reasonable accommodations in the workplace to express (“pump”) breast milk.
In response, Illinois passed a new law that went into effect on January 1, 2015, requiring all employers with one or more employees to provide reasonable accommodations to employees and job applicants who are pregnant, recovering from childbirth, or have a condition relating to pregnancy or childbirth.
The ACLU of Illinois is working to protect the rights of pregnant, post-partum and breastfeeding workers and to make sure that employers and workers are informed about the new Illinois law.
If you experience discrimination based on your pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions (including needing to express breast milk), please click here to share your story.
Learn More:
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View our fact sheet for more information on the new Illinois law and its protections for employees and job applicants who are pregnant, recovering from childbirth, or have a condition relating to pregnancy or childbirth.
- Know your rights about breastfeeding in Illinois.
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Read about the federal laws that protect pregnant, post-partum and breastfeeding workers.
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Learn about what the ACLU is doing around the country to address pregnancy discrimination in the workplace.
- See what policies and practices are in place states across the country for accommodating those who are breastfeeding during the bar exam.
Related blog posts:
Nationwide Bar Exam Policies Force Breastfeeding Moms to Put Legal Careers on Hold. What Decade Are We Living In? – I was six months pregnant when I moved from California to Illinois last fall. I was already a licensed attorney in California, but I needed to take the Illinois bar...Continue reading.
Thank You Illinois Bar Examiners for Accommodating My Need to Pump During the Test and Extending It to All Nursing Mothers – I gave birth to my first child 8 weeks ago and took the bar exam last week. For a time, this grueling combination did not seem possible – and not... Continue reading.
Fired for being pregnant – Thirty-six years ago this week, the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act was signed into law. The law protects pregnant workers from job discrimination, and requires that employers treat pregnant workers the... Continue reading.
Fighting Pregnancy Discrimination in the Workplace – A recent New York Times article tells the story of Angelica Valencia, who asked her employer to accommodate her high-risk pregnancy based on her doctor’s orders. Since Ms. Valencia was... Continue reading.
UPS Finally Admits the Obvious – Letting Pregnant Workers Work is Good for Business – We recently reported that the fight to let pregnant workers come to work has finally reached the Supreme Court. On December 3, the court will hear the case of Peggy Young, a United... Continue reading.