Pregnancy discrimination often happens after someone has already become pregnant. Maybe a person who is pregnant finds it difficult to land a job. Or perhaps someone who becomes pregnant is then passed over for a promotion or even fired from their position. They know it is because of their pregnancy status.
But one important thing to remember is that discrimination can also happen based on the potential for pregnancy. This means that someone could experience this type of workplace discrimination even if they technically are not pregnant at the time.
Age and gender
Often, this type of discrimination just comes down to a person’s age and gender, two other types of potential discrimination.
For instance, say that a 25-year-old woman is applying for jobs after recently getting married. If she gets passed over based on the fact that a potential employer believes she may get pregnant in the near future, that is still pregnancy discrimination, even though the woman is not technically pregnant while going through the interview process.
For all the employer knows, she may never decide to have children at all. But she is still experiencing pregnancy discrimination based on her marital status and potential to become pregnant, which is having a detrimental impact on her career. All workers deserve to be treated fairly and should be given equal opportunities in the job market.
Exploring your legal options
As you can see, discrimination claims can often be very complex. If you believe you have been discriminated against on the job, it is critical that you know exactly what legal options you have.