On Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held that employers are not required to offer reasonable accommodations for pregnancy. Or at least, it appears that way if you don’t read the fine print.
Peggy Young was working as a driver for UPS when she became pregnant and provided her supervisor with a doctor’s note indicating that she would be restricted from lifting packages weighing more than 20 pounds. This restriction made her unable to perform the essential functions of her job, which occasionally required her to lift packages weighing as much as 70 pounds.
Ms. Young was informed by her supervisor that the light work duty UPS offered as an accommodation for employees qualifying under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was not available for pregnancy. She was placed on an extended leave of absence without pay, and eventually lost her medical coverage.
The court held that Young was not disabled under the ADA, and therefore had no right to an accommodation. In addition, it found that the Pregnancy Discrimination Act also does not require reasonable accommodation by employers.
While this case appears to indicate a strong shift in policy, a footnote on page 10 of the decision steals its thunder. Ms. Young filed her claim before the 2008 amendments to the ADA became effective, and the court declined to consider how the amendments would affect her ADA claim.
The definition of “disability” was expanded dramatically by the 2008 amendments. Temporary disabilities now receive protections that were not available when Ms. Young filed her case. In fact, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) highlighted pregnancy accommodations as an emerging issue that it will target in its Strategic Enforcement Plan released in September.
If you have any questions about your requirements or rights under the ADA or the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, contact the employment law attorneys at LeBlanc Law & Mediation at 612-819-9652.
