Golden State Today

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has joined a coalition of 24 attorneys general in an amicus brief supporting the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)’s rule to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) of 2022. This federal legislation mandates that employers provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant and postpartum employees, including those related to abortion care. The rule is currently being contested by a coalition of 17 states, led by Tennessee, which seeks to prevent it from taking effect on June 18, 2024.

“For employees nationwide, the EEOC’s Pregnant Workers Fairness Act rule provides much-needed protections to ensure that no employee will have to choose between their paycheck and their health,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Yet, we are seeing meritless attacks to this rule—a rule that recognizes the full scope of employees’ health needs including abortion care. This is simply unacceptable, and I will continue to fight for comprehensive and equitable accommodations that every employee deserves.”

The PWFA, which received bipartisan support in Congress, obliges employers to offer accommodations for pregnancy-related medical conditions throughout pregnancy and postpartum recovery. These conditions include fertility treatments and pregnancy loss, with accommodations such as time off for childbirth recovery and access to abortion care. In August 2023, the EEOC proposed a rule requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations for workers whose pregnancies end in abortion—primarily in the form of time off for medical appointments or recovery. Attorney General Bonta and 22 other attorneys general supported this proposed rule through a comment letter.

In the amicus brief filed today, the attorneys general argue that the PWFA offers essential protections for employees, particularly low-wage workers and employees of color who face higher risks of negative health outcomes during pregnancy due to their jobs. The coalition also contends that the EEOC was correct in including termination of pregnancy—via miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion—in its interpretation of "pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions," as supported by decades of case law under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act.

Attorney General Bonta is joined in this brief by his counterparts from New York, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island Vermont Washington Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.

A copy of the brief can be found here.