Pregnancy Discrimination in the Workplace

Racism is defined as prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior. In the workforce, the issue of racism and discrimination has been brought to the center of conversations around the world. Companies claim to be “colorblind” and not hire somebody based on their race or gender, but the employment rates among minorities and women around the world is significantly lower than the majority in the given country. There is also the growing issue of minorities, such as blacks in america, making significantly less money than whites. This issue affects people all around the world who happen

With an increasing number of women entering the workforce, pregnancy discrimination has become a pervasive problem. This paper, which focuses on the United States (US), thus considers the underlying reasons and impacts of this biasness from the perspectives of both employee and employer. It then follows with a study on the legal protections in place to prevent such behaviour. And lastly, it will analyse various ethical issues involved in this unequal treatment of pregnant employees in the workplace using ethical frameworks such as Utilitarianism theory, Kantian Ethics and John Rawls’ Justice as Fairness. These ethical frameworks will help highlight

There are many issues to consider in pregnancy discrimination. The well-being of the child, the well-being of the mother, employer/employee relations, as well as gender issues. There are however several State and Federal laws that protect people against pregnancy discrimination. Two of the Federal laws are the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The Family and Medical Aid Act (FLMA), of 1993, provides for 12 weeks of unpaid, job protected leave for certain specified events (8). Whilst one could refer to this as maternity or paternity leave if taken because of a pregnancy, this would not be strictly true. Where maternity and paternity leave are offered around the

Within the Civil Right act was a section entitled Title VII which was created specifically to deal with matters of employment. Title VII’s objective is to prevent discrimination based upon a person’s color, national origin, gender, and religion in regards to all aspects of employment. This protection begins with the initial stages of hiring and training employees and extends up to promotions and dismissals of an employees. If a person belonged to one of the groups outlined by Title VII they became classified as a member of a protected class. (Bohlander and Snell, 101) With the establishment of sex as a protected class the foundation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act had been laid but it would take fourteen years before pregnancy itself would become protected.

When an employee has a baby they could be eligible for maternity leave and maternity pay. You have the right to maternity leave regardless of how long you've been in your job, how many hours you work, or how much you're paid. This is also the case for antenatal appointments. You are legally entitled to reasonable paid time off to attend antenatal appointments. Employees must take a minimum of 2 weeks off work (or 4 weeks if they are a factory worker).

Throughout North American history, women have been struggling to integrate themselves into a male dominated society. The earlier struggle was to be recognized as people, and fighting for the right to vote. While the status on the former has yet to be resolved, modern-day feminists have shifted their view to fight for equality in the workplace. Today, women can face an undefinable number of obstacles in the workforce, from unequal pay, to sexual harassment, lack of representation, and little to no accommodation for maternity status. In the articles Engineering Ignorance and Debating Difference: Feminism, Pregnancy, and the Workplace, authors Suzanne Franzway, Rhonda Sharp, Julie E. Mills, Judith Gill, and Lise Vogel, respectively explore issues women face in their workplace. Franzway, Sharp, Mills, and Gill used Engineering Ignorance to speak about the lack of gender equality in engineering. Vogel explores issues surrounding maternity in the workplace. Though both articles have come to the consensus that women face more obstacles in the workplace than men do, the two speak of two completely separate issues that feminists are attempting to eradicate.

A woman is eligible for “Maternity leave” if, “She is absent from the employment for a period not exceeding eight weeks for the purpose of giving birth; or if she gives her employer at least two weeks of notice of her anticipated date of departure and intention to return.” (“Maternity Leave Act”, 2007) Thanks to these numerous regulations and rights, in these specific circumstances the employees have to be treated fairly, and cannot be discriminated. There are legal penalties when employees are not treated

When a person is discriminated against their race, gender, and age. This is some of the most evident forms of discrimination. I believe the most qualified person should receive the job, regardless of race or ethnicity. When employers disrupt workplace discrimination, legally they can be sued by the person or persons and receive bad publicity. When a employee hurts from unfair treatment due to their race and religion. Proving discrimination is difficult as is can occur in a number of work-related areas, during your initial hiring phase, during training or even after you get the job and have to participate in job evaluations. As far as ethnicity goes, Americans come in every color, shape, and size and a successful business is one that understands

In a precedent-setting decision in 2000, the state Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts upheld a superior court ruling in Carmichael Vs. Wynn & Wynn noting in the text that "discriminatory animus was a factor in the decision not to hire a pregnant woman."

While the world has unanimously advanced and is more accepting of change, the workplace continues to be a place of discrimination, prejudice and inequality. Discrimination is broadly defined to ‘distinguish unfavourably’, isolate; and is context based (Pagura, 2012). Abrahams (1991) described the workplace as an ‘inhospitable place’ where gender disparity and wage gaps persist (Stamarski & Son Hing, 2015). Among other states and countries, the Australian government actively implements and passes laws to protect and maintain equal employment rights. While the objective of these laws is ‘to eliminate discrimination,’ the regulatory mechanisms in the legislation are largely ineffective at achieving this ultimate goal (Smith, 2008). However,

From the beginning of time the male and female have been expected to perform certain roles in society. Males have been expected to work and provide for their family while the female raises the children, cooks, cleans and keeps the house in order. Today many women have broken that tradition and are starting their careers and becoming more independent. Even though females today are braking away from that stereotype, they are being discriminated in the work place because there are still individuals out there that believe that women should play a certain role and that they are not strong enough to work in a cooperation or

Since the passage of this law, women have been fighting continuously for their rights. Equal Rights Advocates have been in commission for the 1974, which is one of the ground breaking forces that have helped women in workplace discrimination. As women believed that discrimination in the workplace would disappear since sex was added as a protected category in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, there was another factor that was against them; pregnancy. Unfortunately, the ERA feels as though this is still under the protected category of sex, because only women can get pregnant. Which means that it is based upon a person’s sex.

This Act states that employers cannot deny a woman employment because she is pregnant, as long as she can perform the major functions of her job. In an article by Beth Scott, she writes that the Pregnancy Discrimination Act covers all aspects of a worker’s employment: hiring, firing, promotions, pay, and other benefits. Scott also states that women who are being interviewed for a certain job are not obligated, under any circumstance, to make it known to their potential employer that they are, or are planning to become pregnant. She also makes it known that the Pregnancy Discrimination Act only covers workplaces that have 15 or more employees, and that you should check with the Women’s Bureau of your regional Department of Labor for

When a mother holds a job and then becomes pregnant she is presented with two options. The first of which would be to quit, or if lucky the company many offer an employee benefit leave. The basis of leave, as an employee benefit, is maternity leave. This offers a certain amount of time paid or unpaid to the mother after the birth of the child. The next step up would be paternity leave or paternal leave. This is leave that not only is offered to the mother but also the father so that both parents may spend the first few weeks at home with the newborn. Not all countries have the basic guarantee to the maternity leave. Let alone the idea of paternity leave, which is still considered