Governor Charlie Baker
BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is planning to sign a bill offering protections for pregnant women in the workplace.
The bill requires employers to offer “reasonable accommodations” to pregnant workers and makes it illegal to fire or refuse to hire a female worker because of a pregnancy.
Reasonable accommodations could include anything from temporary transfers to less strenuous positions, to providing workers with a stool to sit on or more frequent bathroom breaks.
Lawmakers approved the bill last week.
The Republican governor will sign the bill Thursday afternoon during a ceremony at the Statehouse.
House Speaker Robert DeLeo made the bill a priority after MotherWoman, an advocacy group for working women, negotiated an agreement with Associated Industries of Massachusetts on proposed language.
The bill would take effect April 1, 2018.
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