Author: Deborah Widiss

Deborah Widiss is the John F. Kimberling Professor of Law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law. She writes regularly about legal support for pregnant workers and new parents, including a recent law review article, The Federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act : Statutory Requirements, Regulations, and Need (Especially in Post-Dobbs America).

Complying With Trump Administration’s Attack on DEI Could Get Employers Into Legal Trouble

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Since the Trump administration made diversity, equality and inclusion “immoral” and “illegal,” a large part of workplace discrimination in the country still remains to be experienced by women and members of racial minority groups. Now, these groups have less of a platform to make complaints about such discrimination.

A Challenge to the Health of Pregnant Workers—and the Health of Our Constitutional Democracy

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act enjoyed broad bipartisan support, easily passed the House, and was favorably reported out of committee in the Senate.

It did not take long, however, for attacks to ensue. The state of Texas, represented by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, filed a lawsuit challenging the validity of PWFA because the House of Representatives had allowed members to vote for the omnibus bill by proxy.

A federal trial judge in Texas, however, held that PWFA was unconstitutional because he believed only “in person” votes could count for determining a quorum. The case is now pending before the federal appeals court for the 5th Circuit.

(This essay is a part of Ms. and A Better Balance’s Women & Democracy installment, all about the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act—a groundbreaking civil rights law ensuring pregnant and postpartum workers have the right to reasonable workplace accommodations. Bipartisan, pro-family and boldly feminist, the PWFA is both a lesson in democracy and a battleground for its defense against antidemocratic attacks.)