Pregnancy Discrimination: Supreme Court Revives Suit Against UPS

On March 25, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the Fourth Circuit’s judgment in favor of the defendant employer in Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., and sent the case back to the Fourth Circuit for that court to decide whether Peggy Young had submitted enough evidence that UPS discriminated against her on the basis of her pregnancy for the case to go to trial before a jury. The key issue is whether the failure of UPS to accommodate Ms. Young’s pregnancy-related lifting restrictions was pregnancy discrimination based on the fact that UPS accommodates non-pregnant workers who have lifting restrictions.

Since Young v. UPS was filed, the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) has expanded its definition of what is a disability, and will now cover more disabilities that are often pregnancy-related. The EEOC has also issued a new guideline that offers more protection to pregnant workers, specifically stating that “an employer may not deny light duty to a pregnant employee based on a policy that limits light duty to employees with on-the-job injuries.” Here in New Jersey, the legislature recently amended our Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”) to require employers to accommodate pregnancy-related conditions.

If you believe that you have been the victim of pregnancy discrimination, please call the New Jersey employment attorneys of Lenzo & Reis, LLC, at (973) 845-9922 or email us for a free case evaluation.