California Pregnancy Discrimination Lawyer

At Greenberg Gross LLP, our California pregnancy discrimination lawyers represent employees and job applicants who experience discrimination because of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. We investigate discriminatory employment decisions, failures to provide required accommodations, pregnancy-related leave violations, and retaliation against employees who exercise their rights.

Pregnancy discrimination can affect hiring, assignments, promotions, compensation, accommodations, leave, and continued employment. Sometimes the change is abrupt: an employee announces a pregnancy and suddenly encounters doubts from her employer about her commitment or ability to handle important work. In other cases, discrimination becomes apparent only after several employment decisions reveal a pattern.

If you believe pregnancy has affected how your employer treats you, call Greenberg Gross LLP at (949) 383-2800 for a free, confidential consultation.

Why Employees Choose Greenberg Gross for Pregnancy Discrimination Claims

California pregnancy cases can involve several overlapping state and federal protections. Our attorneys determine which laws apply, reconstruct the employer's decision-making, and examine whether pregnancy-related assumptions influenced the employee's treatment. We prepare every case as though it will go to trial, so we can negotiate from a position of strength and we’ll be ready for litigation, if needed.

Greenberg Gross is a trial firm built for high-stakes employment disputes. Our attorneys have earned recognition from Super Lawyers, Martindale-Hubbell's AV Preeminent rating, the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), and the Daily Journal, including Top 100, Top Plaintiff, and Top Labor & Employment recognition.

What Is Pregnancy Discrimination in California?

Pregnancy discrimination occurs when an employer unlawfully treats a job applicant or employee adversely because of pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition.

California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) generally protects employees of employers with five or more employees. California law prohibits covered employers from firing, refusing to hire, harassing, or otherwise discriminating against someone because of pregnancy, childbirth, or a related condition.

Federal Title VII, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, also prohibits pregnancy discrimination by covered employers. Federal protections encompass current pregnancy, past pregnancy, potential pregnancy, and certain medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth.

Pregnancy discrimination is a form of sex discrimination. Employees experiencing broader sex- or gender-based unequal treatment can speak with our California gender discrimination lawyers about the protections that apply.

What Does Pregnancy Discrimination Look Like at Work?

Pregnancy discrimination does not require an employer to openly state that pregnancy motivated its decision. The evidence can come from changes that occurred after the employer learned about the pregnancy.

Examples include:

• Refusing to hire an applicant because she is pregnant
• Denying a promotion because of anticipated maternity leave
• Removing important responsibilities after a pregnancy announcement
• Denying required pregnancy-related accommodations
• Forcing an employee to take leave when another required accommodation would allow her to work
• Penalizing an employee for pregnancy-related limitations or protected leave
• Terminating an employee because of pregnancy or childbirth

The legal analysis depends on the reason for the employer's action and the protections that apply. Our attorneys examine the entire sequence rather than viewing a disputed decision in isolation.

Did Pregnancy Change How Your Employer Viewed Your Future?

One of the most revealing questions in a pregnancy discrimination case is what changed after the employer learned about the pregnancy. Before disclosure, an employee may have been viewed as ambitious, dependable, or ready for advancement. Afterward, managers may begin to make assumptions about whether she will return after childbirth, continue to travel as often, accept demanding assignments, pursue leadership roles, or remain committed to her career.

Those assumptions can affect decisions before the employee ever requests leave. For example, a manager might remove a pregnant employee from a major client account because the manager assumes she will soon be unavailable.

The employer might describe the decision as practical planning. But removing important work can affect the employee's compensation, visibility, performance metrics, and future promotion prospects.

Our attorneys reconstruct the period surrounding the employer's knowledge of the pregnancy. We examine changes in assignments, evaluations, communications, opportunities, compensation, and management expectations. The key question is not simply what happened after the pregnancy announcement, but why the employer's view of the employee changed.

What Pregnancy Accommodations Must California Employers Provide?

California provides significant protections for employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions.

When the legal requirements are met, reasonable accommodations for a pregnancy-related disability include changes such as:

• Modifying work duties
• Providing a stool or chair
• Allowing longer or more frequent breaks
• Temporarily transferring an employee to less strenuous or hazardous work
• Modifying schedules
• Providing pregnancy disability leave
• Providing additional leave as a reasonable accommodation when required

The appropriate accommodation depends on the employee's pregnancy-related limitations and workplace circumstances. California law also requires employers to engage appropriately with accommodation needs rather than simply assuming an employee cannot work.

Federal law provides additional protection through the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). The PWFA generally applies to employers with at least 15 employees and requires reasonable accommodations for known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship.

Importantly, a pregnancy-related limitation does not have to qualify as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for the PWFA to apply.

Can Your Employer Force You to Take Leave Instead of Accommodating You?

An employer cannot simply force an employee onto pregnancy disability leave when a required reasonable accommodation would allow the employee to continue working. California law recognizes accommodations that can enable an employee with pregnancy-related limitations to remain at work. The federal PWFA likewise prohibits a covered employer from requiring a qualified employee to take paid or unpaid leave when another reasonable accommodation is available.

This distinction matters. An employee who wants and is able to continue working with an appropriate accommodation can suffer financial and professional consequences if an employer unnecessarily removes her from the workplace. Our attorneys examine what the employee requested, what medical restrictions the employer received, which accommodations were considered, and why the employer chose leave instead.

What Is California Pregnancy Disability Leave?

California Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) provides job-protected leave to employees disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. PDL generally applies when an employer has five or more employees.

Unlike CFRA leave, PDL does not require an employee to have worked for the employer for a particular number of months or hours. An eligible employee can receive up to four months of PDL per pregnancy, based on the period the employee is actually disabled.

Pregnancy disability can include conditions such as severe morning sickness, gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced hypertension, preeclampsia, postpartum depression, medically necessary prenatal or postnatal care, recovery from childbirth, and certain conditions related to pregnancy loss or lactation. PDL can be taken continuously or intermittently when medically necessary.

California employees can also have rights under CFRA and federal FMLA. Our California FMLA lawyers can explain how job-protected family and medical leave applies when pregnancy, childbirth, bonding, or other qualifying medical needs affect an employee's ability to work.

Do Pregnancy Disability Leave and Baby-Bonding Leave Run Together?

Not necessarily. California's pregnancy disability and bonding protections operate differently.

PDL protects qualifying time for employees who are disabled due to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. CFRA provides eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of leave for bonding with a new child and other qualifying reasons.

Under California's current framework, CFRA bonding leave is separate from PDL. An employee who satisfies the requirements can therefore have PDL for pregnancy disability followed by CFRA leave for bonding.

Federal FMLA interacts differently. When an employee qualifies for FMLA, pregnancy-related FMLA leave can run concurrently with PDL. These overlapping laws are one reason employers and employees should not treat “maternity leave” as a single legal entitlement.

Can You Be Fired While Pregnant?

Being pregnant does not prevent an employer from taking a legitimate employment action for reasons unrelated to pregnancy. An employer cannot, however, fire an employee because she is pregnant, because of a pregnancy-related condition, or because she exercised protected rights.

When an employer claims a termination was unrelated to pregnancy, our attorneys investigate when the decision began and whether the explanation matches contemporaneous evidence. A sudden deterioration in performance reviews after a pregnancy disclosure does not automatically establish discrimination. But a dramatic change can warrant closer examination, particularly when prior reviews were positive, or the employer's explanation changes over time.

Can Employers Make Decisions Based on Assumptions About Mothers?

No. Employers cannot make employment decisions based on unlawful sex, gender, or pregnancy stereotypes.

Managers sometimes assume a new mother will be less committed to work, unwilling to travel, uninterested in advancement, or unable to handle demanding responsibilities. Even decisions intended to be “helpful” can be discriminatory when they deprive an employee of opportunities based on assumptions rather than her actual choices and abilities.

An employer should not decide for an employee that she no longer wants an important account, leadership opportunity, travel assignment, or promotion because she has become or will become a parent. Evidence of these assumptions can appear in emails, messages, meeting notes, assignment decisions, performance discussions, and witness testimony.

Does California Law Protect Lactation and Breastfeeding?

Yes. California provides workplace protections related to lactation, and pregnancy-discrimination protections extend to qualifying lactation-related medical conditions. Employees are entitled to appropriate lactation breaks and a private location that satisfies California's requirements for expressing milk. Medical conditions related to lactation, such as mastitis, can also implicate pregnancy disability and accommodation protections.

Adverse treatment because an employee needs to express milk or due to a qualifying lactation-related condition can raise additional employment law issues.

Can Your Employer Retaliate Against You for Requesting Pregnancy Accommodations?

No. Employers cannot unlawfully retaliate against employees for requesting or using protected pregnancy-related accommodations or exercising other protected rights. Retaliation can involve termination, demotion, discipline, lost assignments, reduced opportunities, or other actionable adverse treatment.

Our attorneys examine the chronology: when the employee requested an accommodation or leave, who knew about it, what changed afterward, and when the disputed employment decision was first discussed to build a solid legal claim.

What Evidence Can Help Establish Pregnancy Discrimination?

Contemporaneous records can reveal whether an employer's treatment changed after learning about a pregnancy or accommodation need. Relevant evidence includes:

• Performance reviews before and after pregnancy disclosure
• Emails, texts, and workplace messages
• Accommodation requests and medical restrictions
• Leave requests and employer responses
• Assignment and client-account records
• Promotion and compensation documents
• Disciplinary records
• Communications about anticipated leave or return to work

Our attorneys can also investigate evidence controlled by the employer. Through preservation demands and litigation discovery, we can seek internal communications, personnel records, decision-making documents, policies, and testimony relevant to the claim.

How Can Our California Pregnancy Discrimination Lawyers Help?

Our California pregnancy discrimination lawyers identify the applicable state and federal protections and investigate how pregnancy affected workplace decisions. We reconstruct the timeline, examine accommodation and leave requests, compare performance and opportunities before and after pregnancy disclosure, identify relevant witnesses, and test the employer's stated explanation against its contemporaneous records.

Our lawyers pursue appropriate administrative claims, negotiate with employers and their counsel, and file lawsuits when necessary. Through discovery, we can obtain evidence that employees ordinarily cannot access themselves and develop the case for resolution or trial.

Employees in the Los Angeles area can also speak with our Los Angeles pregnancy discrimination lawyers about pregnancy-related workplace claims.

How Long Do You Have to File a California Pregnancy Discrimination Claim?

Different deadlines apply depending on the claims involved. For FEHA employment discrimination claims, an employee generally must initiate the complaint process with the California Civil Rights Department within three years of the alleged unlawful act. After receiving a right-to-sue notice, an employee generally has one year from the date of the notice to file a FEHA lawsuit.

For qualifying federal pregnancy discrimination or PWFA claims in California, an EEOC charge generally must be filed within 300 days of the alleged unlawful employment practice.

Other claims arising from the same events can have different deadlines. An internal HR complaint generally does not stop external filing periods from running.

What Remedies Are Available for Pregnancy Discrimination?

Available remedies depend on the claims established and the harm caused. Relief under California employment law can include back pay, front pay, hiring or reinstatement, promotion, out-of-pocket losses, emotional distress damages, and attorneys' fees and costs. Punitive damages are available when certain legal requirements are met.

Accommodation, leave, retaliation, and federal claims can involve additional or different remedies under the laws governing those claims. Our attorneys identify the claims supported by the evidence and pursue the relief available under applicable law.

FAQs About California Pregnancy Discrimination

Talk to a California Pregnancy Discrimination Lawyer at Greenberg Gross

Pregnancy should not allow an employer to rewrite an employee's professional future. When pregnancy, childbirth, accommodation needs, or protected leave influences hiring, assignments, advancement, compensation, discipline, or termination, our attorneys can investigate what changed and why.

The California pregnancy discrimination lawyers at Greenberg Gross LLP evaluate workplace records, preserve evidence, challenge unlawful employment decisions, and pursue appropriate relief through negotiation or litigation.

Call Greenberg Gross LLP at (949) 383-2800 or contact us online for a free, confidential consultation. Our team is available 24/7.