Employers face an almost insurmountable task of maintaining a stable workforce while trying to fully understand new prohibitive laws, current legal obligations for healthcare benefits, and existing abortion-rights employment protections.
The United States Supreme Court’s overturning of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which federally protected the ability to choose to have an abortion, did not ban or make illegal abortions. Rather, it lifted the federal protection, giving states the ability to pass new laws or reactivate dormant laws that would restrict or ban the procedure.
This mass confusion for citizens in states working to limit or ban abortions is only compounded for employers who provide healthcare for workforces around the country. For multi-state employers that are fully insured, monitoring of activity of state departments of insurance will be critical as states are free to regulate the insurance industry within their state, including insurance issued in another state that covers individuals within such state.
Employers should understand the workplace protections that their employees have under existing federal anti-discrimination laws, which may protect an employee’s decision to have the procedure.
Some things employers should keep in mind:
- Employees in states with strict abortion limitations may end up traveling to other states or countries to receive abortion-related care. What obligations to employees, including travel benefits, will an employer have in this situation?
- Will your company’s major medical plan cover this?
- Can employees take job-protected leave to obtain such services?
- What rights might employees have under federal employment laws? Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans employment discrimination based on color, national origin, race, religion, and sex. Additionally, in 1978, Congress enacted the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) to clarify that discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions is considered unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII. Under these laws:
- Employers are prohibited from firing an employee for having or considering having an abortion, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
- Equally, employees are protected from adverse employment actions based on their decision not to have an abortion. For example, the EEOC said, a manager can’t pressure an employee to have an abortion in order to keep a job, get promoted, or be assigned better projects.
Women make up more than half of the country’s workforce. Decisions made by the employer today may impact the success of the business for years to come.
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Not currently an Employer Advantage client?
WE’D BE HONORED TO PROVIDE YOU WITH A NEW PATH TO HR BLISS.
We don’t just give quotes—We provide strategic business proposals.
-Free strategic assessment of your business needs
-Quick and easy account setup and seamless transitions
-Urgent requests | Please Call: Toll Free 877.476.9520
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