Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. ADAMS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his incredible support as chair of the Education and Labor Committee.

Madam Speaker, over 40 years ago, after the Pregnancy Discrimination Act provided civil rights protections to pregnant people, it is shameful that we still must address this issue today.

Every year, roughly 250,000 people in America are denied basic accommodations to continue their work once pregnant; and when these simple temporary adjustments in their work activities are denied, many face being fired or are forced to take unpaid leave simply to protect their health and the health of their pregnancy.

This discrimination can take many forms, but its impacts can be deadly. And, of course, these burdens fall disproportionately on people and women of color who are overrepresented in low-wage jobs that are physically demanding, lack adequate workforce protections, or both. This is also one of the key reasons why I founded the Black Maternal Health Caucus with Congresswoman Lauren Underwood last year.

I am pleased that the House is taking up the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act today, which will create a clear set of rules for employers to follow that requires them to provide accommodations for pregnant workers to continue to work and support their families.

So today we are sending the message that nowhere in America--nowhere in America--should you have to worry about the health of your pregnancy because your employer won't accommodate you. Today we will tell millions of Americans that pregnancy won't prevent them from taking their dreams as far as they can take them.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record a letter from the Maternal Health Coalition, a group of public health professionals, clinicians, and maternal health organizations outlining their support for this legislation. September 11, 2020. Re Support the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.

Dear Representative: As organizations dedicated to ending racial injustice and systemic racism, including dismantling the racism that contributes to this country's Black maternal health crisis, we write in strong support of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.R. 2694). Congress must do all it can to end the prejudice Black pregnant workers and pregnant workers of color continue to face in the workplace. This includes making sure when pregnant workers voice a need for reasonable accommodations that those needs are met rather than penalized and that the workplace is an environment where pregnant workers of color do not fear asking for accommodations.

The Black Maternal Health crisis remains frighteningly persistent and requires immediate attention and multi-faceted solutions. Black women experience maternal mortality rates three to four times higher than white women. The circumstances surrounding this alarming statistic can often be attributed to a lack of access to care, including due to inflexible workplaces, and deep biases in racial understanding. Various social determinants such as health, education, and economic status drastically influence the outcomes of pregnancy for Black women leading to severe pregnancy-related complications. As the Black Mamas Matter Alliance has pointed out ``Health is determined in part by our access to social and economic opportunities, the resources and supports that are available in the places where we live, and the safety of our workplaces . . . however, disparities in these conditions of daily life give some people better opportunities to be healthy than others.'' Black pregnant workers along with Latinx and immigrant women are disproportionately likely to work in physically demanding jobs that may lead to workers needing modest accommodations to ensure a healthy pregnancy. Too often, however, those requests are refused or ignored, forcing pregnant workers of color to disproportionately contend with unsafe working conditions.

Black mothers have among the highest labor force participation rates in the country and 80 percent of Black mothers are their family's primary breadwinner,'' Yet, historically, Black women have been exploited in the workplace, and that exploitation continues to this day. Though Black women only comprise 14.3 percent of the population, nearly thirty percent of pregnancy discrimination complaints are filed by Black women.'' This is because of the multiple forms of discrimination Black workers and other workers of color too often face in the workplace. As scholar Nina Banks has noted, ``The legacy of black women's employment in industries that lack worker protections has continued today since black women are concentrated in low- paying, inflexible service occupations ...'' Black women in low wage jobs working during pregnancy face little support from employers when safeguards do not address pregnancy related accommodations. Faced with the threat of termination, loss of health insurance, or other benefits, Black pregnant people are often forced to keep working which can compromise their health and the health of their pregnancy.

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will positively impact Black women's health and economic security. When Black pregnant people must continue working without accommodations, they risk miscarriage, excessive bleeding, and other devastating health consequences. Black women have the highest incidence of preterm birth and yet we know that workplace accommodations such as reducing heavy lifting, bending, or excessive standing can help prevent preterm birth, the leading cause of infant mortality in this country.

Black women are also at higher risk of preeclampsia, which is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality. We are still learning about how to prevent this dangerous medical condition, yet we know that simply allowing workers to take bathroom breaks can prevent urinary tract infections which are ``strongly associated with preeclampsia.'' Similarly, ensuring pregnant workers can drink a sufficient amount of water can also help pregnant workers maintain their blood pressure, which is critically important since hypertensive disorders (high blood pressure) are also a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality. By putting a national pregnancy accommodation standard in place, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act has the potential to improve some of the most serious health consequences Black pregnant people experience. Furthermore, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will help remove one of the many barriers Black pregnant people face at work by ensuring they are afforded immediate relief under the law, and not thrown into financial dire straits for needing pregnancy accommodations.

Congress has the opportunity to pass legislation to support rather than subjugate Black pregnant workers and workers of color. We urge every member of the House of Representatives to support the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and by extension, the health and economic wellbeing of Black pregnant workers and pregnant workers of color.

Thank you for your time and attention. Sincerely,

Black Mamas Matter Alliance, A Better Balance, American Civil Liberties Union, American College of Nurse-Midwives, Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs, Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, California WIC Association, California Breastfeeding Coalition, Children's HealthWatch, Center for American Progress, Center for Reproductive Rights, Community Catalyst, Families USA, Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia, Healthy Women, Human Rights Watch, In Our Own Voice: National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda, Majaica, LLC, March for Moms, March of Dimes, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF), National Black Nurses Association, National Birth Equity Collaborative, National Institute for Reproductive Health, National Network of Abortion Funds.

National Partnership for Women & Families, National Women's Health Network, National Women's Law Center, Nurse-Family Partnership, Nutrition First--WIC Association of Washington State, National WIC Association, Ohio Black Maternal Health Caucus, Pennsylvania WIC Association, Perinatal Health Equity Foundation, Physicians for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Raising Women's Voices for the Health Care We Need, Shriver Center on Poverty Law, SisterLove Inc., Sister Reach, Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Tara Hansen Foundation, The Afiya Center, URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, U.S. Breastfeeding Committee, WIC Association of NYS, Inc., Wisconsin WIC Association, YWCA of Greater Atlanta, ZERO TO THREE.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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