NYT Draws Attention to Expiration of Federal Funding for Child Care
New Federal Protections for Pregnant Workers
Economic Justice for Women|August 21, 2024
In late 2022, Congress passed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which advocates have championed for over a decade, as an amendment to the omnibus spending package. The new law requires employers to offer pregnant workers reasonable accommodations like extra bathroom breaks, the ability to sit while performing certain tasks and restrictions on how much weight they are required to lift. Unrelenting advocacy by long-time RFF grantees like A Better Balance and MomsRising was essential to the bill’s passage at the 11th hour of the Congressional session. Over ten years ago, Dana Bakst of A Better Balance shared a story that proves the significance of this law in an op-ed for the New York Times.