Understanding the Pregnancy Discrimination Act
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) of 1978 amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The PDA applies to employers with 15 or more employees, consistent with Title VII's coverage threshold.
For HR professionals studying for the SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP exam, the PDA is a frequently tested topic that intersects with other employment laws such as the FMLA, the ADA, and various state pregnancy accommodation statutes.
The core principle of the PDA is straightforward: women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions must be treated the same as other persons who are similar in their ability or inability to work. This means pregnancy must be treated like any other temporary condition or disability for all employment-related purposes.
Key PDA Protections
The PDA provides broad protections throughout the employment relationship:
- Hiring: An employer cannot refuse to hire a woman because of her pregnancy-related condition, as long as she is able to perform the major functions of the job.
- Leave and benefits: If an employer provides disability leave or light-duty assignments for temporarily disabled employees, it must provide the same for employees who are temporarily unable to work due to pregnancy.
- Health insurance: Employer-provided health insurance must cover pregnancy-related conditions on the same basis as other medical conditions.
- Harassment: Harassment based on pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions is illegal, following the same standards as other forms of Title VII harassment.
The Supreme Court's decision in Young v. United Parcel Service (2015) clarified the PDA's protections. The Court held that a pregnant worker can establish a prima facie case of discrimination by showing that her employer accommodated others who were similar in their ability or inability to work but did not accommodate her. If the employer offers a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason, the employee can show that reason is pretextual, particularly if the employer accommodates a large percentage of nonpregnant workers while failing to accommodate pregnant workers.
Interaction with FMLA, ADA, and the PWFA
Pregnancy-related employment protections often involve the intersection of multiple laws:
- FMLA: Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for pregnancy and bonding with a newborn. FMLA leave runs concurrently with PDA protections when both apply.
- ADA: While pregnancy itself is not a disability under the ADA, pregnancy-related conditions (such as gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, or sciatica) may qualify as disabilities requiring reasonable accommodation.
- Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA): Enacted in 2023, the PWFA requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide reasonable accommodations for known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation would cause an undue hardship. This law fills a gap that existed under the PDA, which required equal treatment but did not explicitly require accommodations.
On the SHRM exam, expect questions that test your understanding of how these laws work together. A single employee may have rights under the PDA, FMLA, ADA, PWFA, and applicable state laws simultaneously.
HR Best Practices for Pregnancy Accommodation
HR professionals should implement clear processes for handling pregnancy-related accommodation requests:
- Train managers to recognize accommodation requests and forward them to HR without making independent decisions about an employee's ability to work.
- Engage in an interactive process with the employee to identify effective accommodations (similar to the ADA interactive process).
- Document all accommodation discussions, decisions, and the reasons for any denials.
- Apply policies consistently to all employees with temporary conditions, not just pregnant employees.
- Review light-duty policies to ensure pregnant employees have equal access to these programs.
Start Practicing Today
Pregnancy discrimination questions on the SHRM exam often require you to apply multiple laws simultaneously. The exam consists of 134 questions over 4 hours at Prometric or OnVUE, and multi-law scenarios are especially common in this area.
SHRMpractice.com offers practice questions covering the PDA, PWFA, and related laws. Take a diagnostic assessment to measure your readiness, then sign up for full access to our question bank and study resources.