(New York, NY) The following is a statement from A Better Balance Co-Founder and Co-President Dina Bakst:
“We applaud Attorney General James for this clear-eyed, powerful call to action for Senate leadership on the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act—a long overdue bill to ensure pregnant workers aren’t forced to choose between the health of their pregnancy, and their economic security. AG James has been a fierce champion for women and workers’ rights, and with her leadership, New York has led the way on enacting legal protections for pregnant workers in need of accommodations in the workplace, first in the City and then statewide.
Today’s letter is a timely recognition that pregnant and postpartum workers across the country deserve and urgently need the same rights New Yorkers already have. A Better Balance joins AG James in urging Senator Schumer to bring the PWFA to a floor vote without delay. As COVID-19 cases spike across the country, we must do everything we can to ensure pregnant and postpartum workers—particularly low wage and essential workers, who are disproportionately women of color—are no longer discriminated against and forced off the job.”
ABOUT A BETTER BALANCE’S LEADERSHIP ON THE PREGNANT WORKERS FAIRNESS ACT: A Better Balance uses the power of the law to advance justice for workers caring for themselves and their loved ones. In 2012, A Better Balance launched the movement for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. Since then, we have been a leader in drafting and advancing the federal PWFA and in moving bipartisan state pregnancy accommodations bills. A Better Balance Co-Founder and Co-President Dina Bakst has testified twice in Congress in support of the legislation, first in 2019 and then in March 2021. A Better Balance’s legal analysis and direct support of pregnant women have been central to making the case for the PWFA. Our Long Overdue report found that that two thirds of women have lost their pregnancy accommodation claims since 2015 under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and lifted up the countless women who are suffering because of the gaps in our federal laws.
