Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

IIB 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1065 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 17, 2021 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions AN ACT To eliminate discrimination and promote women’s health and economic security by ensuring reasonable workplace ac- commodations for workers whose ability to perform the functions of a job are limited by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 HR 1065 RFS Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pregnant Workers 4 Fairness Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. NONDISCRIMINATION WITH REGARD TO REASON- 6 ABLE ACCOMMODATIONS RELATED TO PREG- 7 NANCY. 8 It shall be an unlawful employment practice for a cov- 9 ered entity to— 10 (1) not make reasonable accommodations to the 11 known limitations related to the pregnancy, child- 12 birth, or related medical conditions of a qualified 13 employee, unless such covered entity can dem- 14 onstrate that the accommodation would impose an 15 undue hardship on the operation of the business of 16 such covered entity; 17 (2) require a qualified employee affected by 18 pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions 19 to accept an accommodation other than any reason- 20 able accommodation arrived at through the inter- 21 active process referred to in section 5(7); 22 (3) deny employment opportunities to a quali- 23 fied employee if such denial is based on the need of 24 the covered entity to make reasonable accommoda- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 HR 1065 RFS tions to the known limitations related to the preg- 1 nancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions of a 2 qualified employee; 3 (4) require a qualified employee to take leave, 4 whether paid or unpaid, if another reasonable ac- 5 commodation can be provided to the known limita- 6 tions related to the pregnancy, childbirth, or related 7 medical conditions of a qualified employee; or 8 (5) take adverse action in terms, conditions, or 9 privileges of employment against a qualified em- 10 ployee on account of the employee requesting or 11 using a reasonable accommodation to the known lim- 12 itations related to the pregnancy, childbirth, or re- 13 lated medical conditions of the employee. 14 SEC. 3. REMEDIES AND ENFORCEMENT. 15 (a) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY TITLE VII OF THE 16 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and 18 procedures provided in sections 705, 706, 707, 709, 19 710, and 711 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 20 U.S.C. 2000e–4 et seq.) to the Commission, the At- 21 torney General, or any person alleging a violation of 22 title VII of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) shall 23 be the powers, remedies, and procedures this Act 24 provides to the Commission, the Attorney General, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 HR 1065 RFS or any person, respectively, alleging an unlawful em- 1 ployment practice in violation of this Act against an 2 employee described in section 5(3)(A) except as pro- 3 vided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection. 4 (2) COSTS AND FEES.—The powers, remedies, 5 and procedures provided in subsections (b) and (c) 6 of section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 7 1988) shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 8 this Act provides to the Commission, the Attorney 9 General, or any person alleging such practice. 10 (3) DAMAGES.—The powers, remedies, and pro- 11 cedures provided in section 1977A of the Revised 12 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), including the limita- 13 tions contained in subsection (b)(3) of such section 14 1977A, shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 15 dures this Act provides to the Commission, the At- 16 torney General, or any person alleging such practice 17 (not an employment practice specifically excluded 18 from coverage under section 1977A(a)(1) of the Re- 19 vised Statutes). 20 (b) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CONGRESSIONAL AC- 21 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and 23 procedures provided in the Congressional Account- 24 ability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) to the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 HR 1065 RFS Board (as defined in section 101 of such Act (2 1 U.S.C. 1301)) or any person alleging a violation of 2 section 201(a)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)) 3 shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures this 4 Act provides to the Board or any person, respec- 5 tively, alleging an unlawful employment practice in 6 violation of this Act against an employee described 7 in section 5(3)(B) except as provided in paragraphs 8 (2) and (3) of this subsection. 9 (2) COSTS AND FEES.—The powers, remedies, 10 and procedures provided in subsections (b) and (c) 11 of section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 12 1988) shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 13 this Act provides to the Board or any person alleg- 14 ing such practice. 15 (3) DAMAGES.—The powers, remedies, and pro- 16 cedures provided in section 1977A of the Revised 17 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), including the limita- 18 tions contained in subsection (b)(3) of such section 19 1977A, shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 20 dures this Act provides to the Board or any person 21 alleging such practice (not an employment practice 22 specifically excluded from coverage under section 23 1977A(a)(1) of the Revised Statutes). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 HR 1065 RFS (4) OTHER APPLICABLE PROVISIONS.—With re- 1 spect to a claim alleging a practice described in 2 paragraph (1), title III of the Congressional Ac- 3 countability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) 4 shall apply in the same manner as such title applies 5 with respect to a claim alleging a violation of section 6 201(a)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)). 7 (c) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 5 OF TITLE 8 3, UNITED STATES CODE.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and 10 procedures provided in chapter 5 of title 3, United 11 States Code, to the President, the Commission, the 12 Merit Systems Protection Board, or any person al- 13 leging a violation of section 411(a)(1) of such title 14 shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures this 15 Act provides to the President, the Commission, the 16 Board, or any person, respectively, alleging an un- 17 lawful employment practice in violation of this Act 18 against an employee described in section 5(3)(C) ex- 19 cept as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this 20 subsection. 21 (2) COSTS AND FEES.—The powers, remedies, 22 and procedures provided in subsections (b) and (c) 23 of section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 24 1988) shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 HR 1065 RFS this Act provides to the President, the Commission, 1 the Board, or any person alleging such practice. 2 (3) DAMAGES.—The powers, remedies, and pro- 3 cedures provided in section 1977A of the Revised 4 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), including the limita- 5 tions contained in subsection (b)(3) of such section 6 1977A, shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 7 dures this Act provides to the President, the Com- 8 mission, the Board, or any person alleging such 9 practice (not an employment practice specifically ex- 10 cluded from coverage under section 1977A(a)(1) of 11 the Revised Statutes). 12 (d) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY GOVERNMENT EM- 13 PLOYEE RIGHTS ACT OF 1991.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and 15 procedures provided in sections 302 and 304 of the 16 Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 17 U.S.C. 2000e–16b; 2000e–16c) to the Commission 18 or any person alleging a violation of section 19 302(a)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16b(a)(1)) 20 shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures this 21 Act provides to the Commission or any person, re- 22 spectively, alleging an unlawful employment practice 23 in violation of this Act against an employee de- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 HR 1065 RFS scribed in section 5(3)(D) except as provided in 1 paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection. 2 (2) COSTS AND FEES.—The powers, remedies, 3 and procedures provided in subsections (b) and (c) 4 of section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 5 1988) shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 6 this Act provides to the Commission or any person 7 alleging such practice. 8 (3) DAMAGES.—The powers, remedies, and pro- 9 cedures provided in section 1977A of the Revised 10 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), including the limita- 11 tions contained in subsection (b)(3) of such section 12 1977A, shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 13 dures this Act provides to the Commission or any 14 person alleging such practice (not an employment 15 practice specifically excluded from coverage under 16 section 1977A(a)(1) of the Revised Statutes). 17 (e) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY SECTION 717 OF THE 18 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and 20 procedures provided in section 717 of the Civil 21 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16) to the 22 Commission, the Attorney General, the Librarian of 23 Congress, or any person alleging a violation of that 24 section shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 HR 1065 RFS dures this Act provides to the Commission, the At- 1 torney General, the Librarian of Congress, or any 2 person, respectively, alleging an unlawful employ- 3 ment practice in violation of this Act against an em- 4 ployee described in section 5(3)(E) except as pro- 5 vided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection. 6 (2) COSTS AND FEES.—The powers, remedies, 7 and procedures provided in subsections (b) and (c) 8 of section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 9 1988) shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 10 this Act provides to the Commission, the Attorney 11 General, the Librarian of Congress, or any person 12 alleging such practice. 13 (3) DAMAGES.—The powers, remedies, and pro- 14 cedures provided in section 1977A of the Revised 15 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), including the limita- 16 tions contained in subsection (b)(3) of such section 17 1977A, shall be the powers, remedies, and proce- 18 dures this Act provides to the Commission, the At- 19 torney General, the Librarian of Congress, or any 20 person alleging such practice (not an employment 21 practice specifically excluded from coverage under 22 section 1977A(a)(1) of the Revised Statutes). 23 (f) PROHIBITION AGAINST RETALIATION.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 HR 1065 RFS (1) IN GENERAL.—No person shall discriminate 1 against any employee because such employee has op- 2 posed any act or practice made unlawful by this Act 3 or because such employee made a charge, testified, 4 assisted, or participated in any manner in an inves- 5 tigation, proceeding, or hearing under this Act. 6 (2) PROHIBITION AGAINST COERCION.—It shall 7 be unlawful to coerce, intimidate, threaten, or inter- 8 fere with any individual in the exercise or enjoyment 9 of, or on account of such individual having exercised 10 or enjoyed, or on account of such individual having 11 aided or encouraged any other individual in the exer- 12 cise or enjoyment of, any right granted or protected 13 by this Act. 14 (3) REMEDY.—The remedies and procedures 15 otherwise provided for under this section shall be 16 available to aggrieved individuals with respect to vio- 17 lations of this subsection. 18 (g) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subsections 19 (a)(3), (b)(3), (c)(3), (d)(3), and (e)(3), if an unlawful em- 20 ployment practice involves the provision of a reasonable 21 accommodation pursuant to this Act or regulations imple- 22 menting this Act, damages may not be awarded under sec- 23 tion 1977A of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a) if 24 the covered entity demonstrates good faith efforts, in con- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 HR 1065 RFS sultation with the employee with known limitations related 1 to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions who 2 has informed the covered entity that accommodation is 3 needed, to identify and make a reasonable accommodation 4 that would provide such employee with an equally effective 5 opportunity and would not cause an undue hardship on 6 the operation of the covered entity. 7 SEC. 4. RULEMAKING. 8 Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 9 of this Act, the Commission shall issue regulations in an 10 accessible format in accordance with subchapter II of 11 chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, to carry out this 12 Act. Such regulations shall provide examples of reasonable 13 accommodations addressing known limitations related to 14 pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. 15 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 16 As used in this Act— 17 (1) the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Equal 18 Employment Opportunity Commission; 19 (2) the term ‘‘covered entity’’— 20 (A) has the meaning given the term ‘‘re- 21 spondent’’ in section 701(n) of the Civil Rights 22 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e(n)); and 23 (B) includes— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 May 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1065.RFS H1065 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 HR 1065 RFS (i) an employer, which means a per- 1 son engaged in industry affecting com- 2 merce who has 15 or more employees as 3 defined in section 701(b) of title VII of the 4 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 5 2000e(b)); 6 (ii) an employing office, as defined in 7 section 101 of the Congressional Account- 8 ability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301) and [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]