Perhaps Overdue, Pregnancy Discrimination Update Issued By The EEOC

Following up on our recent post regarding pregnancy discrimination developments, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued the Enforcement Guidance: Pregnancy Discrimination and Related Issues on July 14, 2014.  This is the first comprehensive update of the EEOC's guidance on discrimination against pregnant workers in thirty years, since its 1983 Compliance Manual chapter.  One major development in the new Enforcement Guidance is that pregnancy discrimination claims are not limited to the current pregnancy under the PDA – they can be based on "past pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions."  Thus, the EEOC will more likely find a causal connection between a past pregnancy and the challenged employment action if there is close timing between the two, however a longer time gap between the pregnancy and the challenged action will not foreclose a finding of pregnancy discrimination.