The EEOC announced an update to its Enforcement Guidance on Pregnancy Discrimination and Related Issues (“Enforcement Guidance”) to reflect the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Young v. UPS.
It explains, by way of example, that if an employer provides light-duty work to a large percentage of non-pregnant employees but does not provide light-duty work to pregnant workers, this may “establish that the policy or practice significantly burdens pregnant employees.” If the employer’s reasons for its policy or practice do not justify this burden, it will give rise to an inference of discrimination. The Enforcement Guidance further explains that a plaintiff can establish a prima facie case of discrimination by showing that she is pregnant, that she requested an accommodation, that her request was denied, and that her employer accommodated others who were “similar in their ability or inability to work.”