The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) created a federal accommodation framework for workers with known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The statute took effect in 2023, and the EEOC's implementing regulations became effective in 2024.
Who Is Covered?
The PWFA generally applies to employers with at least 15 employees and protects qualified employees and applicants with known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The law focuses on accommodation and does not replace protections available under Title VII, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, the ADA, FMLA, or more protective state or local laws.
Reasonable Accommodations
Depending on the job and medical need, accommodations can include additional breaks, seating, schedule modifications, temporary changes in duties, permission to carry water or food, parking changes, remote work where feasible, leave, or temporary suspension of certain job functions. The appropriate accommodation is fact-specific.
The Interactive Process
Once the employer knows of a pregnancy-related limitation and a need for adjustment, employer and employee generally should communicate about effective accommodations. Employers should not reflexively demand unnecessary documentation for obvious or modest limitations and should not substitute an unwanted accommodation without considering the employee's request and available alternatives.
Leave Is Not Always the First Answer
A central feature of the PWFA is that an employer should not force an employee onto leave when another reasonable accommodation would permit the employee to remain working, absent undue hardship or another lawful basis.
Temporary Inability to Perform a Function
The PWFA can protect an employee who temporarily cannot perform one or more essential job functions when the inability is expected to be temporary and the function can be accommodated without undue hardship. This differs in important ways from the traditional ADA analysis.
Prohibited Conduct
Covered employers may not deny reasonable accommodations absent undue hardship, retaliate against a worker for requesting or using a protected accommodation, interfere with PWFA rights, or take adverse action because the worker needs an accommodation.
Relationship to Other Laws
Pregnancy-related conditions can also qualify as disabilities under the ADA. FMLA may provide job-protected leave when eligibility requirements are met. Title VII prohibits discrimination because of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. A single workplace event may therefore implicate several statutes.
Employees should document accommodation requests, the employer's response, medical restrictions where appropriate, and any adverse treatment that follows.