EEOC Aims to Finalize PWFA Regulations by End of Year
Author: Emily Scace, XpertHR Legal Editor
December 12, 2023
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) expects to issue final regulations implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) by the end of 2023, according to the agency's latest regulatory agenda.
The PWFA, enacted in December 2022, requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide reasonable accommodations for employees' known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, unless an accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer.
The EEOC was directed to issue regulations to implement the PWFA by December 29, 2023. The agency published proposed regulations in August, and the public comment period closed on October 10. The proposed regulations define key terms, clarify the law's scope of coverage, list considerations for determining whether an accommodation is an undue hardship, and specify certain accommodations that will virtually always be considered reasonable.
To date, the EEOC has received over 100,000 comments on the proposed PWFA regulations. While many comments express approval of the proposed rule, many object to the broad definition of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, which includes abortion and other methods of pregnancy termination. It remains to be seen how closely the final rule will resemble the proposal.
Other items on the EEOC's fall 2023 regulatory agenda include:
- A proposed rule, slated for March 2024, to allow employers to electronically post required information about workers' rights under antidiscrimination laws;
- An increase in the civil penalty for violating posting requirements, targeted for January 2024;
- Amendments to existing regulations to incorporate references to the PWFA where applicable; and
- A proposed rule to amend the procedure and requirements for granting exemptions from certain recordkeeping and reporting requirements under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA).