Sometimes a California worker plans on getting pregnant, and sometimes the pregnancy comes as a complete surprise. Regardless how you became pregnant, though, California state and U.S. federal laws protect you from being discriminated against by your employer due to your reproductive status.
In spite of these legal protections, numerous women find themselves losing their jobs — or missing out on important job opportunities — because they became pregnant. A typical example would be a woman who announces to her boss that she is pregnant; and, three weeks later, she’s out of a job.
If you lost your job after announcing your pregnancy, your boss might try to cover it up by issuing unfavorable employment reviews. In these cases, it’s important to look at an employee’s prior performance reviews to see how they match up. If you have a history of receiving glowing reviews, but suddenly your reviews went downhill after your pregnancy announcement, this could be used as proof in your favor during a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit.
It should be noted that pregnant workers can often take medical leave both before and after the birth of their children. If an employer tries to tell a mother-to-be that she can’t have this time off, it’s a violation of employment laws. In particularly, it’s a violation of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and could be seen as pregnancy discrimination by a federal court.
If you think your job is in danger — or if you think you lost your job — because you became pregnant, the Bononi Law Group is here to help. We will discuss your situation with you in a free, first-time consultation to determine your legal rights and options.
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