At the end of 2022, President Joe Biden signed the appropriations bill passed by the last Congress into law. Included in this bill is the new Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act (PUMP).
The PWFA is similar to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because it mandates employers provide reasonable accommodations to pregnant employees and applicants with known temporary limitations. These include physical or mental conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth. The PWFA includes the same meaning of “reasonable accommodation” as the ADA and applies to all employers with 15 or more employees. It’s effective June 27, 2023.
Also included in the appropriations bill is the PUMP Act. Federal law already mandates that employees be given reasonable break time to express breast milk for up to one year following the birth of a child. Employees must also be given a place that is not a restroom and shielded from view to do so. However, exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act () were not covered under the previous legislation. The PUMP Act now covers these previously uncovered employees and is effective April 28, 2023. It also covers all employers with 50 or more employees.
These are significant changes in federal employment laws that employers need to adhere to. Non-compliance with either statute could result in employees being rewarded with back pay, front pay, compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorneys’ fees.
Resource: Ashton Eller at (317) 264-7536 or aeller@indianachamber.com
