Whether you are the sole owner of a small business, a human resource consultant to a large corporation or a hiring specialist with a national firm, you must learn the ins and outs of pregnancy discrimination laws.

Maternity discrimination law stems from the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Your company will have to comply with both the federal statutes and state pregnancy laws. Most human resource professionals are designing workshops and seminars to educate their staff on how to ensure that they comply with these regulations as they do their work. Internet sources for your pregnancy discrimination law education and training program include the following:

1. Depend on federal and state statutes to provide you with the source of maternity discrimination law in the United States.

2. Get professional advice on pregnancy law that you can use in implementing your company's HR policies.

3. Consult online media sources that help employers understand actual pregnancy discrimination cases.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Go straight to official sources of pregnancy law

A successful training program on pregnancy law will help your employees learn the specific procedures they must follow in hiring practices and employee management schemes so they can avoid a pregnancy discrimination case against your company.

I recommend: The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission explains which businesses must comply with these laws and what is meant by the term, "pregnancy-related protection." The Government Printing Office provides gives you ready access to Title 29, the labor statutes, in addition to providing guidelines on sexual discrimination laws. AFSCME explains employees' rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act. The California Department of Industrial Relations explains the rights state and private sector employees have under maternity discrimination laws.

Look to websites that provide practical assistance on complying with pregnancy laws

Ensure that the educational experience you provide to your staff helps them discover how retaliation, wage disparity and antagonism towards whistle blowers are actions that are protected by the pregnancy discrimination laws.

I recommend: The Personnel Policy Service answers employers' questions and gives practical advice for how to comply with pregnancy discrimination laws. Read online articles analyzing the issues involved in pregnancy discrimination cases that the Gangemi Law Firm posts on its website. The Armstrong Law Firm explains the different parts that make up a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit. The NFIB discusses what maternity discrimination law means for small businesses.

Access online articles on maternity discrimination laws by pregnancy discrimination lawyers

Provide an educational experience for your staff that helps them understand circumstances that could give rise to a lawsuit based on maternity discrimination. Read online articles that allow you those circumstances to the circumstances of employees whose claims ended successfully.

I recommend: All Academic connects you to scholarly articles that present real life cases of employees who filed pregnancy discrimination complaints and how the courts in those cases applied the statutes. Articles on the Wall Street Journal provide statistics on maternity discrimination cases. The Washington Post publishes articles designed to make both employers and employees more aware of anti-pregnancy sentiments in the workplace.

Connect your staff to seminars and audio that explain the details of pregnancy law

Add a unique touch to your staff's educational experience by allowing them to learn pregnancy law directly from professionals in the field.

I recommend: The audio seminars and other events at HR Hero will enforce your staff's understanding of pregnancy issues in the workplace. Brightline Compliance offers online courses in how to hire and interview lawfully and how to promote a working environment that is free of pregnancy discrimination.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  According to maternity discrimination law opinions, most women need to prove that an employer's adverse behavior was motivated by the pregnancy itself.

Pregnancy discrimination cases are on the rise, with pregnancy discrimination lawyers taking more businesses to court each year. To make sure you're not one of the statistics, you need to take a proactive stance and ensure that your policies are in full compliance with pregnancy discrimination law.

Pregnancy discrimination law requires that you treat a pregnant employee no different than any other employee with similar physical limitations and leave of absence needs. Pregnancy laws don't just apply to benefits for existing employees; they also apply to the overall environment of your workplace and your hiring practices, making it necessary to train your entire staff to be knowledgeable about the law and what constitutes pregnancy discrimination.

To ensure your business conforms to pregnancy laws and is protected from pregnancy discrimination, you need to:

1. Make sure your discrimination training addresses maternity discrimination law, as well as sexual discrimination in general.

2. Craft clear policies to reflect pregnancy discrimination law.

3. Document reasons for employee discipline and termination, and share this documentation with a defense lawyer specializing in pregnancy law should an employee accuse you of pregnancy discrimination.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use training to avoid pregnancy discrimination

Pregnancy discrimination can surface in the guise of stereotypes about pregnant employees' medical condition as well as more overt sexual discrimination. Combat these problems with training that addresses pregnancy law and sexual discrimination.

I recommend: Discrimination Awareness Program: A Practical Guide & Training Tool addresses a wide scope of discrimination laws, including maternity discrimination law. To focus on sex and gender discrimination in your training, choose one of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace’s training packages, or explore ELT’s fully customizable sexual harassment course.

Craft policies with pregnancy law in mind

Spell out your maternity leave and pregnancy policies clearly, and use sample policies that conform to pregnancy law to help you craft your own.

I recommend: Download free leave of absence policies from Personnel Policy Service, Inc., or the Business Owner’s Toolkit to help you craft your own maternity leave policy.

Locate a lawyer who specializes in pregnancy law

If a pregnancy discrimination case is brought against you, you'll need legal representation -- even if your documentation shows that you committed no discrimination. If you don't have a lawyer, you can find one online.

I recommend: Browse lawyers by state and specialty with FindLaw's Lawyer Search. Fill out Small Business Law Firm's short form to have a lawyer contact you.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  To avoid a pregnancy discrimination cases and to ensure that you're fully complying with maternity discrimination laws, have pregnancy discrimination lawyers review your policies and practices.

Dealing with pregnant employees can pose a challenge in some businesses. This is especially true when the pregnant woman's job requires her to stay on her feet for long hours or work with potentially hazardous materials. However, discriminating against a pregnant woman by demoting her, lowering her pay or treating her differently from other employees is against the law.

When you find out how pregnancy discrimination law will affect your company, you must remember that these laws don't protect only a pregnant employee. These laws also protect pregnant job applicants.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Civil Rights Act of 1964 Title VII

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 Title VII prevents employers with 15 or more employees from making any gender-based discriminatory decisions. This includes preventing a pregnant woman from being considered for advances in wages, job duties or other compensation. Rights during pregnancy were enforced via an addendum, called the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, to the original title.

I recommend: You can find information on this act on the Princeton website. The information includes the procedures followed by the EEOC when a complaint of violation of this act is filed. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is also a good resource.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

The EEOC is a division of the federal government charged with ensuring that businesses comply with laws against discrimination. This agency fields complaints from workers regarding issues including pregnancy discrimination, retaliation and wage gaps.

I recommend: WiseGeek offers a detailed explanation about what types of complaints the EEOC handles.

Retaliation

If you find yourself transferring an employee or terminating her after she files a discrimination complaint against the company, you are guilty of retaliation. However, if your actions are justified by the employee's performance or if you aren't aware of the complaint, it isn't discrimination.

I recommend: For an analysis of the relationship between discrimination and retaliation, see the legal blog maintained by Bergstein and Ullrich.

Fringe benefits

Fringe benefits, including vacation pay, certain medical benefits, discount cards and education benefits, must be offered and provided to pregnant women. This includes unmarried pregnant women.

I recommend: The Internal Revenue Service website offers information about what is classified as a fringe benefit. The Nevada Equal Rights Commission has information on ways that fringe benefits come into play in regards to pregnancy discrimination.

Mediation

Once a complaint is filed with the EEOC, you may receive the option to settle the complaint via mediation. This is the process by which you and the employee discuss options to resolve the complaint in a mutually beneficial manner with the help of a third party. Both the employee and employer must be willing to settle via this method.

I recommend: Equal Employment Opportunity Commission offers a detailed explanation of the mediation process, including the benefits for complainants and employers.

Short term disability

Some employees who become pregnant will qualify for short term or temporary disability in certain states. The rules for this type of disability vary from state to state. However, in most states, this disability coverage provides the employee with a percentage (often 60%) of her salary when problems with the pregnancy require her to stay off work.

I recommend: Disability Law explains the intricacy of temporary disability law, including how to determine if a person is eligible.

You can begin your tutorial on pregnancy discrimination law news and trends by considering some of the same resources you would go to for information on other topics. Employers want to keep up to date on the types of cases that are being litigated so they can ensure they are protecting themselves from lawsuits. The great thing about the Internet is it allows the business owner to find the latest information on pregnancy discrimination laws from his office on his own schedule. No need to buy books or go to conferences.

Some of the online sources a company executive can go to for data include online news sources, blogs written by experts and websites that post up to date information on maternity discrimination laws. To start your research:

1. Subscribe to online news sources for information on pregnancy law.

2. Read blogs written by experts who are pregnancy discrimination lawyers.

3. Peruse websites that contain information on pregnancy discrimination law news and trends.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Read news online about pregnancy laws

News which is posted to online sites can be wonderful resources for staying informed on the history of pregnancy discrimination law, recent decisions, trends in EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) filings and effective management of the pregnancy discrimination act.

I recommend: ScienceDirect provides online access to articles on pregnancy discrimination. Delaware Employment Law Blog reviews a new study on pregnancy discrimination cases.

Examine blogs with up to date information on pregnancy discrimination law

Blogs can provide immensely helpful information on the types of cases pregnancy discrimination attorneys are bringing before state courts. Other blogs provide employers and attorneys an opportunity to debate and communicate about the current state of opinions on laws on pregnancy.

I recommend: Florida Employment Law Blog has up to date information on pregnancy discrimination law. Incisive Media debates whether pregnancy law helps or hurts women.

Examine websites that discuss pregnancy discrimination and how to prevent it

Some law firms that specialize in maternity discrimination law have on their website insightful discussions on this topic where you can learn a lot about how to accommodate pregnant women and get some answers to very basic questions about pregnancy law such as: what does the pregnancy discrimination act (PDA) mean for employers and how does PDA impact employer-offered insurance programs?

I recommend: Discrimination Attorney.com provides information from pregnancy discrimination lawyers. Columbus Bar Association has an FAQ on maternity discrimination law that you might find helpful.