The FY23 Omnibus Appropriations Bill Brings Employment Law Changes

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act contained two important employment law changes, which will go into effect this year.

• Pregnant Workers Fairness Act – The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act has been introduced in every Congress since 2011 and made it across the finish line as an amendment to the spending bill in large part due to bi-partisan support and backing from some of the large employer-side groups including the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM).   The provisions will go into effect on June 27, 2023 and apply to all private employers with 15 or more employees. The new law requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions the same way that they would for other disabilities.  Up to this point, federal law has only gone so far as expressly prohibiting discrimination against employees because of their pregnancy or pregnancy related conditions.  To the extent that the employer is located in a state with no pregnancy accommodation law, the employer will need to make sure that they are complying with the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act by June of this year.
• Pump for Nursing Mothers Act – The Pump for Nursing Mothers Act expands employers’ obligation to provide employees with time and space for lactation.  The major provisions of the new law went into effect at the time the legislation was signed into law.