Angela Ames, a Nationwide Insurance worker in Iowa, returned to work in July 2010, after her eight-week maternity leave, and found that she had no place to pump breast milk.  She was told that there was a three-day waiting period to process her paperwork in order to use the lactation room and was given the […]

Transgender issues have been front and center this past week. At Sunday’s Golden Globes awards ceremony, the innovative online show Transparent took home two awards, one for Best TV Series – Musical or Comedy and one for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. Both acceptance speeches were personal and moving, with the show’s creator, Jill […]

I attended the Supreme Court’s oral arguments on Young v. UPS earlier this month and was very excited to talk with Plaintiff Peggy Young’s lawyer, Sharon Gustafson, about the case.  Sharon will be among the speakers at an upcoming panel I am hosting, sponsored by the Women’s Bar Association and Sanford Heisler Kimpel. Kate: For the […]

I am working with the D.C. Women’s Bar Association to host a panel discussion on January 29 about pregnancy discrimination and Young v. UPS, which was argued before the Supreme Court earlier this week.  (Blogger’s note: for more information on the case, check out Tuesday’s blogpost. Panelists will include a lawyer representing Peggy Young; a lawyer advising companies […]

Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Young v. UPS, a case about a former UPS driver whose healthcare provider recommended she not lift packages over 20 pounds during her pregnancy.  She asked UPS to accommodate this restriction by either allowing her to continue doing her current job and let her colleague take […]

When I was a senior in high school, I wrote a submission for the Ohio Bar Association’s There Ought to Be a Law Contest (nerd, guilty as charged).  I advocated civil unions for same-sex couples.  I presented the essay at a conference organized by my school, only to have a student visiting from another school […]

When we talk about the gender discrimination that our clients face in the workplace, we often talk in terms of leveling the playing field for women: We’re not asking employers to treat female employees better than they treat men, but we do demand – and the law requires – that they treat them equally. This […]

Working while pregnant is hard. If you don’t believe me (and why should you?), read this.  If you’re a man, read it again, because, holy crap.  And keep in mind that the pregnant lawyer/blogger describes (1) a pregnancy that is “normal” (which is to say, one that does not leave her disabled in the eyes […]

A few hours ago, the staff at Jezebel – a site that self-describes as being “a general interest women’s website” – banded together and posted an essay entitled “We have a rape gif problem and Gawker Media won’t do anything about it.”  As the essay explains: for months, an individual or individuals has been using […]

A few days ago, when Kate K wrote about Hobby Lobby, she also mentioned forced arbitration.  This is a cause I’m particularly passionate about.  My focus comes from seeing so many of my clients forced to make an impossible decision.  Whatever those that support forced arbitration may like to pretend, employees do not have equal bargaining power with […]