Illinois Expands on Young v. UPS
Illinois Expands on Young v. UPS
The holding in Young v. UPS recognizes that the PDA and Title VII do not specifically require light duty or any other accommodation, but they prohibit discrimination on the basis of pregnancy or sex. Specifically, these laws require that women affected by pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions be treated the same as other persons who are not pregnant but who are “similar in their ability or inability to work.” Thus, to prevail, a plaintiff must show that she suffered an adverse employment action when compared to “similarly situated” employees who were not pregnant.
A new Illinois law that went into effect on January 1, 2015 and provides in pertinent part: It is a civil rights violation for an employer to not make reasonable accommodations, if so requested, to an employee for “conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions,” unless the employer can demonstrate the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer; require a job applicant or employee to accept an accommodation that the applicant or employee chooses not to accept; require an employee to take leave if another reasonable accommodation can be provided;
retaliate against an applicant or employee for requesting an accommodation; or fail to reinstate an employee affected by pregnancy, childbirth or common related conditions to her original or an equivalent job with equivalent pay and benefits upon her signifying her intent to return or when her need for reasonable accommodation ceases, absent proof of an undue hardship on the employer’s business.
Employers with one or more employees are covered by the Act. Moreover, the Act applies not only to full-time employees, but also to part-time and probationary employees “affected by pregnancy, childbirth or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth.”
So Young V. UPS aside, pregnant employees or those trying to get pregnant in Illinois do not have to prove that the company treats similarly situated employees better. Employees simply have to show they were refused accommodation, discriminated, or retaliated against because of pregnancy, pregnancy related medical condition, etc.