The Center for WorkLife Law is a national advocacy and research organization that advances gender and racial equity by strengthening legal rights for pregnant people and family caregivers. Our work seeks to ensure all people have the freedom to build and maintain economic security through employment and educational opportunities, without having to sacrifice their health or their loved ones’ care.
WorkLife Law fights these and other problems by advancing policy change and providing direct legal support to workers and students in need.
For the first time in nearly 40 years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has used its emergency suspension authority to stop the use of the pesticide Dacthal – a toxin that has been endangering pregnant farmworkers and their babies. This is one of many important steps needed for the law to finally acknowledge the dire risks farmworkers unnecessarily face, especially when they are pregnant.
Last week, Illinois Governor Pritzker signed House Bill 2161, groundbreaking legislation securing anti-discrimination protections for workers with caregiving responsibilities. For Illinois’ 1.5 million family caregivers, this bill will ensure employment decisions are made based on their job performance, instead of bias. Illinois is the sixth state to prohibit family responsibilities discrimination, but the state’s new protections are now the nation’s strongest, protecting a wide range of family relationships and caregiving activities. The legislation is based on a model developed by The Center for WorkLife Law.
By a 5-4 vote Friday, the Supreme Court rejected the Biden administration’s request to limit the scope of preliminary injunctions blocking the enactment of its Title IX rule. As a result, preliminary injunctions will continue to bar the Department of Education from enforcing the Title IX rule in 26 states and hundreds of educational institutions. The Title IX regulations were originally slated to go into effect August 1st, providing strong protection for pregnant and postpartum students and safeguarding students nationwide from discrimination on the basis of sex.
