Court Unfortunately OKs Firing Moms Taking Too Much Maternity Leave
LatestThe unfortunate headline reads, Court: It’s OK to ax mom. And the story behind it is even more unfortunate: A Massachusetts court has ruled that women who take more than eight weeks of maternity leave can be fired.
Massachusett’s Supreme Judicial Court ruled that,
“Once a female employee is absent from employment for more than eight weeks, she is no longer within the purview of the [Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act] and, consequently, is not afforded the protections conferred by the statute.”
The case was brought by a housekeeper who said she was told she could take 11 weeks leave, only to be fired by her employer. According to the Boston Herald, “Stephens cited a Massachusetts Commission against Discrimination guideline that advises employers to notify employees in writing if they don’t plan to guarantee a job beyond eight weeks, [but] the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the guideline is not law.”