Dear Helpline

When I told my boss I was pregnant, he said, "That’s unfortunate! You had so much potential." I'm afraid he's going to cut my hours – or worse, fire me. Is this legal? What rights do I have?

You are protected by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act from being discriminated against in employment & employment decisions while you are pregnant. PDA says that all workplaces that engage in interstate commerce (using phones/the internet actually counts for this!) and have 15 or more employees cannot discriminate against pregnant women when making hiring/promotion decisions, cannot force a pregnant woman to take leave, and cannot deny pregnant women the same benefits they give to other "temporarily disabled" employees. Therefore, it is unlawful for your employer to cut your hours, refuse to promote you, or to fire you based solely on your pregnancy. And, if he should do so, that statement he made could be sufficient grounds for filing a discrimination charge with the EEOC.

In the News, part two

I don't have a computer or internet access at home, so every morning I get to work about a half hour early so I can have time to check my email & read up on the news before I start the day. Normally I watch "Meet the Press" or buy a $1 copy of the AJC on Sunday mornings & catch up on the weekend's news that way, but since yesterday was Easter, I was really out of touch with what's been going on by the time I got to work this morning. In addition to learning how to standoff with the pirates off the coast of Somalia ended (one word: Whoa!), there were two articles that pertained to 9to5 that drew my attention...

The second was from AJC.com, about an increase in discrimination lawsuits as more and more workers are laid off during the recession.

Read the article here.

I don't have too many comments on this article... Instead, I just found it interesting that the number of discrimination claims and lawsuits has jumped so much in recent months. I operate the 9to5 Job Survival Helpline (1-800-522-0925) and I get a lot of questions about discrimination -- pregnancy discrimination, age discrimination, gender discrimination, among others. Women call me with questions about what's illegal (and what's not -- for instance, it's not illegal for a company to refuse to hire someone because they know that person is homeless!) and what their rights are if they have been discriminated against.

And just remember: Make sure you know your rights BEFORE you're discriminated against, so you can take necessary action against any discrimination that you experience. Any questions? Don't hesitate to call the Helpline.

Dear Helpline

The New York Times is reporting today that the number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits has reached an all-time high. Read the article here. With so many people out of work and needing assistance, 9to5 wants to make sure you know about recent changes to the unemployment benefits you can receive. The following has been taken from the "Dear Helpline" column in 9to5's Winter 2009 Newsline:



I only have one week left of unemployment benefits and I haven't found a new job. What can I do??

You're in luck -- in December, Congress passed an extension of unemployment insurance benefits for all fifty states. This means that everyone currently receiving unemployment insurance can collect benefits for seven more weeks. Also, if you live in a state with an unemployment rate higher than 6% (which is now a majority of states) your benefits will be extended another thirteen weeks -- for a total of twenty additional weeks. To find out how long your extension will be, contact your state Department of Labor or the Bureau of Labor Statistics at (202) 691-5200 or http://www.bls.gov/web/laumstrk.htm for the unemployment rate in your state.