Washington, DC — Today, Rep. Lucy McBath (GA-06) announced that bipartisan legislation she introduced to secure strong protections for pregnant workers passed the House of Representatives on a bipartisan vote of 329-73. H.R. 2694, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act  is co-led led by Representatives Jerry Nadler (D-NY-10), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01), Jamie Herrera Beutler (R-WA-03), and Rep. John Katko (R-NY-24).

“The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will ensure that no pregnant woman is unfairly fired, or forced to risk the health of themselves or their pregnancy, to earn a paycheck. Our mothers deserve these federal protections,” said McBath. “We all want to support our working mothers. Allowing them simple accommodations can ensure they are able to continue working and provide a living for themselves and their families.”

The legislation guarantees pregnant workers’ right to reasonable accommodations – such as extra bathroom breaks, relief from heavy lifting, and other minor job modifications that ensure they can continue working without jeopardizing their health or the health of their pregnancy. The legislation would require employers to make reasonable accommodations for workers with known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.

In 2015, the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Young v. UPS allowed pregnant workers to bring reasonable accommodation discrimination claims under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). But pregnant workers are still being denied accommodations because the Young decision set an unreasonably high standard for proving discrimination. As a result, in two-thirds of cases after Young, courts ruled against pregnant workers who were seeking accommodations under the PDA.

H.R. 2694 is supported by the Chamber of Commerce, A Better Balance, American Civil Liberties Union, National Partnership for Women & Families, and the National Women’s Law Center.