Amazon sued over alleged discrimination against pregnant workers

Key Points:

• A nationwide class-action lawsuit accuses Amazon of discriminating against pregnant employees by firing or retaliating against those seeking accommodations, alleging violations of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and New York state law.
• The lawsuit claims Amazon imposed excessive medical documentation requirements, delayed or denied basic accommodation requests, and deducted time off for medical needs from limited unpaid time off, leading to termination warnings or firing.
• Plaintiffs report Amazon's use of handheld scanners to monitor workers' activities, including legally protected lactation breaks, potentially penalizing employees for taking these breaks.
• Amazon denies the allegations, stating it approved over 99.9% of pregnancy-related accommodation requests last year and follows federal law by providing individualized accommodations.
• Specific cases cited include employees with high-risk pregnancies who were denied seating accommodations, had approved breaks deducted from unpaid time off, and were ultimately fired after their unpaid time off balances fell below zero.