The Washington State Attorney General's Office has filed a civil rights lawsuit against Seattle Public Schools for failing to provide adequate accommodations for pregnant and nursing employees, violating state law. The AG's investigation highlighted instances where employees, including an eight-month pregnant worker, were denied the ability to sit during their workday and did not have access to legally required accommodations such as flexible restroom breaks and modified work schedules.
In addition to neglecting to establish district-level policies to address pregnancy accommodation requests, the lawsuit alleges Seattle Public Schools also retaliated against employees seeking accommodations. This resulted in negative performance reviews, admonishments for doctors' appointments, and reassignments from preferred classroom positions.
The suit further complains nursing employees were not provided reasonable break times to express milk, nor were they afforded clean and private locations to pump. Some employees were subjected to embarrassing situations where people walked in on them while they were expressing milk, leading to infections and other health issues, as mentioned in the complaint filed in King County Superior Court.
Attorney General Nick Brown's statement underscored the repercussions faced by the employees, who "suffered mentally, physically, and financially because of the school district’s actions." Despite AG Office attempts to resolve matters before legal action, these overtures were unsuccessful, prompting the filing of the lawsuit seeking compensation and a halt to the discriminatory practices, as per the Washington State Attorney General's Office.
