As part of Women History Month events, the Women’s and Fair Practices Departments last week held a virtual panel discussion hosted by its equal employment opportunity attorneys to provide information and tips on how to handle discrimination against women in the workplace.
WFP EEO Attorneys Francesca Gross and Paul Robinson explained how several issues are affecting women in the workplace, such as pregnancy discrimination, gender pay gap, sexual harassment, and gender discrimination.
Women, for example, still get paid less than men doing the same job, and it’s worse for women of color. Women get passed over for a promotion or not getting a coveted assignment even though they have equal or more experience, skills, education. Pregnant women are still denied reasonable accommodation such as light duty, telework, or medical leave.
Employees need to be aware of laws that protect their rights on these issues. According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, for example, employers are required to provide nursing mothers breaks for milk pumping for one year and a private place to pump at work that is not a bathroom. A new 2023 law extends the coverage to more nursing employees.
“Pregnancy is temporary, but it still must be accommodated under the Pregnant Worker’s Fairness Act,” Gross said.
If the accommodation affects a work function, that function can be postponed or paused, Robinson added.
A real-life example includes a case in which a female delivery driver for UPS was pregnant and put on leave without pay because she couldn’t lift 70 lbs. even after the employee requested accommodation. The employee lost her health insurance during that time, but subsequently sued and won. The Supreme Court said UPS should have given her light duty during her pregnancy just like they provided it to men who requested and received light duty accommodation for various temporary ailments.
To win a case on the gender pay gap, employees need to look at all the criteria that factor in including having the same supervisor to prove they get paid less because of gender, the attorneys said.
But one of the most important things federal employees can do to fight discrimination is to document what happens and put the agency on notice. There have been cases that the employees lost because of a lack of documentation and the fact that management claims they are not aware of the issue.
Gross warned that if the agency offers a solution and the employee doesn’t accept it, the agency may argue they have no duty to further engage the employee after their offer was denied. However, the employee can defend rejecting an offer that appears punitive. For example, if an employee is sexually harassed by a coworker, and the supervisor offers to transfer the harassed employee to a location two hours away, the harassed employee can reject that offer and explain why; namely that the supervisor should instead transfer the harasser, not her.
Have questions about discrimination against women in the workplace?
Contact WFP EEO attorneys here.
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