Discrimination after maternity leave
For every mother who is also employed in the workforce, returning to work presents many challenges. There are issues involving your leave, getting your old job back, leave for care of your child and lactation breaks that your employer is legally required to provide. It can seem overwhelming trying to protect your rights in the workplace.
At Le Clerc & Le Clerc LLP, we can help. Our attorneys understand medical and parental leave law and we have experience representing families in pregnancy issues at work and all types of work-related legal issues. We serve residents of San Francisco and the surrounding areas of California. Talk with an attorney from our firm to get the help you need.
There are several laws, which protect parental rights in the workplace.
Lactation Accommodations
When an employee returns from pregnancy leave, she has the right to be reinstated to the same position she held before she left. She may also choose to take leave under California law to bond with the baby.
In either event, if the new mother has chosen to breastfeed her child, her employer is required to permit her to take reasonable break time for lactation and a space in which she can do so privately. An employer can require the employee to combine that time with her regular paid rest breaks, but if it takes longer to express the breast milk than the break period, then the employer must permit the employee to continue the break (although it may be unpaid).
Family School Partnership Act
California law encourages you to participate in your child’s education, and it prevents your employer from standing in the way. With reasonable notice to your employer, California’s Family School Partnership Act requires employers with 25 or more employees to allow parents or guardians up to 40 hours per year of unpaid time off work to participate in school approved activities with their children who are in licensed day care facilities, kindergarten or grades one to 12. Examples of these activities include attending parent-teacher conferences and accompanying your child on a field trip.
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