Massachusetts laws
MGL c. 151B Unlawful discrimination because of race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry or sex.
- MGL c. 151B, § 4(1E) Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
Federal laws & regulations
Laws
29 USC § 218d Breastfeeding accommodations in the workplace
42 USC §§ 2000gg-2000gg-6 Pregnant worker fairness
Regulations
29 CFR 38 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
29 CFR 1636 Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
Selected cases
Butner v. Department of State Police, 60 Mass. App. Ct. 461 (2004)
“Section 4(1) of G. L. c. 151B prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of sex in the absence of a bona fide occupational qualification. Discrimination on the basis of pregnancy amounts to sex discrimination actionable under that section.”
Equal Opportunity Employment Commission v. Houston Funding II, Limited, 717 F.3d 425 (5th Cir. 2013)
"[W]e we hold the EEOC's argument that Houston Funding discharged Venters because she was lactating or expressing milk states a cognizable Title VII sex discrimination claim…An adverse employment action motivated by these factors clearly imposes upon women a burden that male employees need not—indeed, could not—suffer."
Web sources
FLSA protections to pump at work, U.S. Department of Labor.
Employers are required to "provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for their nursing child for one year after the child's birth each time such employee has need to express the milk."
Helping patients deal with pregnancy– and childbirth–related limitations and restrictions at work under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Know your rights: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, National Women’s Law Center.
Fact sheet covering the main aspects of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. Available in English and Spanish.
MCAD guidance on the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Mass. Commission Against Discrimination, 2018.
Information on the law effective April 1, 2018. Q&A includes specific guidance on breastfeeding or expressing breast milk during work hours.
Time and place to pump at work: Your rights, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Explains protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act and Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
What you should know about the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Provides a Q&A-style summary of the law. Includes links to resources for workers.
Print sources
Employment discrimination in Massachusetts, 4th ed., MCLE 2024.
Chapter 5: Pregnancy discrimination.
Employment law, 3rd ed. (Mass. Practice v. 45), Thomson Reuters, 2016 with supplement.
Section 8:21.50: Discrimination based on pregnancy; Section 16:15: Parental, child care, medical, and domestic violence leave.
Labor and employment in Massachusetts, LexisNexis, loose-leaf. (eBook available with library card)
Section 4-4[b]: Pregnancy, parental leave, sexual orientation, gender Identity.
Contact
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| Last updated: | April 2, 2025 |
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