Pregnancy Discrimination
Pregnancy
Discrimination Law
State and federal laws prohibit discrimination against pregnant women. An
employer cannot refuse to hire or promote any employee simply because she is
pregnant. Under the Minnesota Human Rights Act and Title 7 of the federal Civil
Rights Act of 1964, an employee cannot be fired or forced to take a leave
because of pregnancy. Additional information about pregnancy
discrimination is available on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission's (EEOC) website at: http://www.eeoc.gov/type/pregnancy.html.
Benefits
for Pregnant Women
Employers are not required to provide benefits to their
employees. An employer who provides paid vacation, health insurance, disability
leave or insurance, personal or sick leave may not discriminate on the basis of
pregnancy in offering those benefits. Employees who do not know their company's
benefit policies should read their employee handbook or union contract, or ask a
supervisor or the human resources office.
When an employee is
physically unable to work due to her pregnancy complications, delivery or other
conditions, she may be entitled to sick leave, disability leave, and/or
insurance coverage if the employer offers these types of benefits for other
medical conditions. Some companies make disability leave available after sick
leave is used up.
If an employer offers
health insurance covering other medical conditions, the employer must cover the
medical costs of pregnancy to the same extent. If the health insurance does not
provide coverage for pregnancy, the employer must make up the difference.
Parental
Leave Main Page | Minnesota's
Parental Leave Law
U.S. Family
and Medical Leave Act | Pregnancy
Discrimination | Resources
Last Updated:
Thursday, 24-Aug-2006 13:28:01 CDT (mmp)
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