When the Stork Carries a Pink Slip

By Leslie Alderman/The New York Times

With the economy in turmoil many new and expectant mothers are finding that federal law does not protect them from the seemingly endless wave of corporate layoffs.  In fact it is entirely legal for an employer to layoff a pregnant woman or woman on maternity leave provided the employer can make the agrument that she is being let go for a reason not related to her pregnancy.  Some lawyers believe that employers are now using the economy and the law’s laxity to tacitly discriminate against new or expectant mothers.

Last year the number of pregnancy-based discrimination charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission increased by nearly 50 percent from a decade earlier, to a total of 6,285.  It is likely this number will rise even higher this year.

For many pregnant laid-off workers this is creating other challenges in addition to losing their jobs.  Women nearing the end of their pregnancy may not be able to collect unemployment because they are unable to look for work.  Others are finding that they are unable to obtain affordable healthcare because their employer is too small to be required to offer COBRA medical benefits.

If you believe that you have been discriminated against, first speak with your employer’s human resources department.  If they are unresponsive you can contact an employment lawyer or file a claim with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission at 1-800-669-4000 or www.eeoc.gov/charge/overview_charge_filing.html.

To read the entire article visit:  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/health/28patient.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=Stork%20Pink%20Slip&st=Search