In Massachusetts, you can’t be fired for being pregnant. You also can’t be fired for seeking medical treatment related to your pregnancy.
Our law firm recently represented two clients who were terminated due to being pregnant. In one case, the client had an ectopic pregnancy and had to undergo emergency surgery. She was fired for missing scheduled days at work.
The second case involved an employee who was having morning sickness and she asked for an accommodation from her employer. Her requested accommodation was simple – all she asked was to start her shift later and finish later. She was denied the accommodation and then fired.
In both of these cases, the employer committed 1) disability discrimination (the “disability” being the complications from the pregnancies) and 2) gender discrimination (pregnancy is specific to females; treating an employee differently because of their gender is discrimination).
In cases of disability and gender discrimination, an employee only has 300 days from the last act of discrimination (the firing under these two cases) to bring a claim (called a “Charge”) at the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD). This deadline can come up fast and discrimination claims can be tricky. To preserve your rights, you should hire an attorney who represents employees in discrimination cases.
If you are in Massachusetts and you’ve been fired because of your pregnancy, our firm may be able to help. If you’d like to discuss your situation, Contact Us, the consultation is completely confidential.