When the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Applies

When the federal rule applies (and when state rules go further)

If you have 15 or more employees, federal law requires reasonable workplace adjustments for pregnancy-related limits unless the change would cause real hardship. That covers private and public employers nationwide.

If you have fewer than 15, the federal statute usually does not apply — but several states still cover smaller shops, including California at 5+, Minnesota and Illinois from the first employee, Connecticut at 3+, New York at 4+, and Massachusetts at 6+. Check the state where the employee actually works, not only your headquarters.

The traps that catch people: you generally cannot answer with unpaid leave first when a stool, water, restroom breaks, or a schedule tweak would let the employee keep working; you need a short two-way conversation rather than a one-way reassignment; and you usually may not demand a doctor's note for water, restroom, sit/stand, or meal-and-drink breaks.

What to do this week

• List employees by work state, especially CA, MN, NJ, NY, MA, IL, CT.
• Tell supervisors water, restroom, sit/stand, and short food breaks are default yes.
• Write down every open pregnancy-related request and what you approved.
• Re-open cases where someone was put on leave without a work adjustment first.
• When recovery or bonding leave starts, send the FMLA notice if it applies.

Where small employers get caught

• The cafe lead put on unpaid leave instead of getting a stool and water.
• The warehouse picker moved to nights without anyone asking what she needs.
• The HQ handbook applied to a remote employee in Minnesota.
• The HR form that demands a clinic note for bathroom breaks.

Keep them working when a small change would work

The expensive pattern is treating pregnancy as leave-or-nothing. Document the request, try a temporary adjustment that keeps the person working, and save leave for when work really cannot continue. The paper trail of that conversation is what you need if a charge arrives later.