Denying a Job to a Woman Who Might Become Pregnant is Illegal

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission settled a lawsuit against a retirement community that the EEOC said discriminated against a potential employee because of her potential to become pregnant in the future.  The EEOC’s lawsuit alleged that a manager working for the retirement community sent a text message to a job applicant asking when she planned to have another baby.  The manager also said that the position does not allow “a lot of time off for long periods of time.”  After this, the company did not interview that job applicant and instead hired an older employee, which it believed would not become pregnant.  The alleged conduct is a violation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which prohibits pregnancy and sex discrimination by an employer or potential employer.  See EEOC v. Glenridge on Palmer Ranch, Inc., No. 8:18-cv-02340 (M.D. Fla.).