Hundreds of countries around the world provide women and man with paid maternity leave. Sweden provides the best package, giving women 420 days (over a year) with 80% paid wages. The United States is by far one of the worst countries, giving women 12 weeks leave with NO pay. According to the Huffington Post, "Maternity leaves aren't simply a matter of time off for childcare--they can also strongly impact the rest of a child's life. According to a report by non-governmental organization Save The Children, in countries with longer periods of parental leave, children were found to be breastfed for long er and their life expectancy was higher." So here is yet another reason why we all have to move to Sweden. But I digress.
There is a significant Supreme Court case in the works right now that we must pay significant attention to. On December 3rd, the Supreme Court had a hard time understanding what duty employers have to pregnant women under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), in Young v United Parcel Service (UPS). This case came as a result of a UPS driver, Peggy Young, who became pregnant in2006. Young therefore requested "light duty", which was a temporary pass from lifting 70-pound packages. She could still perform all other duties while pregnant. But the company rejected her request stated that their pregnant workers were not included in the categories of eligible alternate assignments. Young then got unpaid leave and lost her pension and health benefits. This was in 2006, and since then, young has spent eight years trying to sue UPS for violating the PDA.
Justice Antonin Scalia, at Wednesday's hearing, stated that Young was demanding, "most-favored-nation status" for pregnant women. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in contrast, stated that the position of UPS put their pregnant workers in a "least-favoured nation" status. Lawyers and the Justices started bringing up examples of other potential health benefits, like a back-injury. But there should be a simple decision. Being pregnant isn't a health problem. It is a body's natural function. Questions of physical disability in comparison to pregnancy shouldn't be posed. What bothers me most is that corporations alongside many conservative republicans have been spending too much time trying to protect the rights of unborn fetuses instead of considering the rights of the women who carry them
A decision won't be made until June. Young has already waited eight-years for justice. This Supreme Court decision could impact millions of working women across the country.
Sources:
- http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2014/12/women-and-work
- http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/22/maternity-leaves-around-the-world_n_1536120.html
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