It’s 2024, and women make up half or more of the general labor force – so is pregnancy discrimination actually still that prevalent?
Unfortunately, it is. In fact, one out of five mothers say that they’ve personally experienced pregnancy discrimination at work. A closer look at the statistics shows that women of color are even more likely to experience pregnancy discrimination than their white counterparts, and the incidents are higher in male-dominated industries. Despite being illegal pregnancy discrimination continues to be common because:
Employers assume their pregnant workers will be nonproductive
Some employers consider it a burden to have to schedule around a worker’s maternity leave, and they don’t like the idea of having to hire temporary replacements or redistribute a worker’s tasks. Others think that pregnant employees will disrupt the workflow due to prenatal appointments or pregnancy-related health issues.
New mothers are considered uncommitted to their employers
Stereotypes about new mothers abound – and a lot of employers automatically see a new mother as inherently “not committed” to her career and the employer’s goals. There’s also a perception that mothers will always put their careers behind their responsibilities to their families. They may also assume that a woman who goes on maternity leave may not even return, after. In this way, pregnancy discrimination often overlaps with general gender discrimination.
In general, there are good reasons that many young women fear telling their employers that they’re pregnant – particularly in workplaces where they already feel unrepresented. They know that, in their employer’s eyes, pregnancy is just more “proof” that women are unreliable and less valuable than their male counterparts. If you’ve been the victim of pregnancy discrimination, it may be time to learn more.