MATERNITY LEAVE DISABILITY
Women who are employed by employers with five or more employees in California are eligible for maternity leave disability. Besides merely taking four months off for maternity leave pregnant women may also take time off before their pregnancy due to pregnancy related disabilities. The total number of absences due to pregnancy cannot exceed four months unless the employee is also covered by the California Family Rights Leave Act (CFRA) which provides similar job rights as the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Pregnant women who have worked 1,250 or more hours at their employer during the last calendar year, for one or more years of service, at an employer with 50 or more employees in a 75 mile radius might be able to take up to 7 months due to pregnancy related medical conditions.
Maternity leave can be taken for the period of time required to give birth and then recover. Maternity leave also covers post-partum issues. It may also cover time spent giving special care to a new born baby. In order for maternity leave employment rights to be triggered the employee must actually request time off for pregnancy related medical conditions. Employers are not liable for that which they do not know. Thus, the employee needs to indicate the leave is for pregnancy related medical conditions. Maternity leave does not have to be requested nor granted in writing which means communications can be oral. Some cases involve questions whether an employer can require requests for maternity leave be verified, or reduced to writing in a doctor’s note. Prudent practices dictate a written record of the request. When making arrangements for maternity leave it is also advisable to provide a beginning and end date, or to explain why those dates are not known. Lawsuits involving maternity leaves typically involve employees losing their jobs due to maternity leaves, or being reinstated to an inferior position. If the employer has made it clear they will not allow the maternity leave, or a leave within the time provided under California law the employee should consult an experienced pregnancy law firm to determine whether they may have grounds for quitting and suing.
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your Full Pregnancy or Maternity Leave Rights
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PREGNANCY DISCRIMINATION PDA
The term Pregnancy disability leave (PDL) can refer to time off both before and after childbirth. A PDL leave is leave needed due to pregnancy related medical conditions. The applicable California Code of Regulations suggests 30 day notice be given of an intent or request for a pregnancy disability leave. There are many pregnancy related medical conditions that are sudden, and for which 30 day’s notice cannot be given. Particular attention should be paid to the 30 day rule when requesting far in advance time off for childbirth and recovery. If an employee must miss work due to pregnancy related medical tests they have little notice of, or their doctor immediately puts them out of work due to a pregnancy related medical condition the 30 day rule would be against the intent of the broad legislative protection California pregnancy disability laws are intended to have. Employees who go on pregnancy disability leave are supposed to be reinstated to their jobs or a comparable job after their leave. If the employee wishes time spent on a pregnancy disability leave can be paid through available sick time, PTO days, or vacation. Alternatively, the employee can opt to go on short term disability through the EDD if their doctor provides sufficient documentation. Obviously, in the event of extremely short term pregnancy disability leaves the employee should not go on EDD short term disability. If an employee is fired for asserting their right to, or actually taking a pregnancy disability leave they have grounds for a wrongful termination lawsuit. Employers who deny an employee’s pregnancy disability leave are liable for lost wages, emotional distress, punitive damages, and potential California Labor Code Section 1102.5 penalties of $10,000.00. Employers who lose lawsuits involving pregnancy rights must pay the reasonable attorney fees and costs of the employee who brings the lawsuit. Our firm has achieved substantial case results for pregnant women who were fired, or mistreated due to their pregnancies.
These results included:
- $365,000 following a won jury trial for a $9.00 an hour employee when a sanitarium refused to accommodate pregnancy related lifting restrictions for a CNA
- $342,500 in 2018 dollars for a minimum wage warehouse worker forced to violate her pregnancy related lifting restrictions
- A won binding arbitration for $168,000 in 2018 dollars for a $9.00 an hour employee fired due to a pregnancy related medical appointment
- A jury verdict with punitive damages for a minimum wage warehouse worker forced to violate her pregnancy related restrictions and otherwise mistreated due to pregnancy
- Multiple $125,000-$150,000 settlements for pregnant women mistreated or fired from their jobs
• The above case results are neither a guarantee nor prediction of future success
PREGNANT EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION
Situations come up in which pregnant women are not given the same job opportunities as non-pregnant women. We have seen cases in which pregnant women are prevented from travelling which effects their advancement and earning potential. A failure to allow a pregnant woman to do work she normally does is pregnancy discrimination if neither she nor her doctor has made such a request. Although our law firm has handled many pregnancy cases including through arbitration and trial, and it is our intention to make the employee’s legal problem our problem opposed to their nightmare, we must be honest about what is entailed in fighting an employer due to pregnancy. It is true we only represent employees on a contingency and are only paid when and if we collect from the employer. Thus, the employee has little to lose if are able to take their case. However, we cannot spend 100-400 hours of attorney time fighting a case that will bring little or no economic benefit to the employee. For these reasons we believe pregnancy cases should fall into the categories of a failure to accommodate a pregnancy related medical restriction (which is discrimination), a job termination (which is job discrimination), or active harassment due to pregnancy.
This article has already discussed multiple examples of failures to accommodate pregnancy related restrictions and job terminations, but what is pregnancy harassment? Defining the difference between pregnancy harassment versus pregnancy discrimination versus a failure to accommodate is typically difficult and not subject to precise variation. Obvious examples of pregnancy harassment involve situations in which the employee is made fun of due to pregnancy. This might include taunting the employee, or making disparaging remarks about their presence and physical abilities due to pregnancy. In a jury trial our firm won the supervisor did not believe the employee should go through labor because she was an unmarried woman. This involved both religious discrimination and harassment. If an employer makes the employee perform tasks that violate her pregnancy related restrictions that conduct might be both a failure to accommodate and pregnancy harassment especially if the supervisor delights in trying to make the employee miserable and further physically debilitated due to pregnancy. We cannot overemphasize the need to consult with an experienced pregnancy discrimination lawyer. Many situations seem wrong, but whether they violate the law, and what the employee should do about the situation are issues only a qualified employee lawyer can provide meaningful input on.
Get results, call an experienced employee law firm at
1-877-525-0700. We handle employee lawsuits all over California from our offices in Bakersfield, Los Angeles, Sherman Oaks, Oxnard, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Riverside, Tustin, Torrance, and Ontario.