As an employee, if you become pregnant, you may be wary of pregnancy discrimination. Some employees are nervous to tell their boss, for example, because they fear losing their job or having their hours cut. They know that things like maternity leave or taking time off for medical appointments can be seen as a negative by their employer.
For one thing, it is important to know that this type of direct pregnancy discrimination is illegal. But for another, you can actually face discrimination even if you are not pregnant.
Potential pregnancy
The thing to keep in mind is that discrimination based on a potential pregnancy is also prohibited. Just because a person has the capacity to become pregnant at some hypothetical point in the future does not mean that their boss can treat them differently.
Women in general may face this type of pregnancy discrimination. If an employer refuses to hire all women simply to avoid any issues with maternity leave, it could be a form of gender discrimination.
This can also be an issue for people in an age bracket where pregnancy is more likely. If someone is in their mid-20s and tells their boss that they just got married, their boss may assume that they are going to have children. If that assumption leads to discrimination, it is still pregnancy discrimination, even if that employee never wanted to have children in the first place.
If you have faced any of these types of discrimination on the job, be sure you understand all of the legal options at your disposal.