SB68: requiring an employer to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees.

SB 68 - AS INTRODUCED

2021 SESSION

21-0392

04/06

SENATE BILL 68

AN ACT requiring an employer to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees.

SPONSORS: Sen. Hennessey, Dist 1; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Sen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20; Sen. Sherman, Dist 24; Sen. Ricciardi, Dist 9; Sen. Rosenwald, Dist 13; Sen. Reagan, Dist 17; Sen. Whitley, Dist 15; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Perkins Kwoka, Dist 21; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Gray, Dist 6; Sen. Prentiss, Dist 5; Rep. Marsh, Carr. 8; Rep. Deshaies, Carr. 6; Rep. DeSimone, Rock. 14; Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19

COMMITTEE: Commerce

ANALYSIS

This bill requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodations to an employee related to the employee's pregnancy or childbirth and makes the failure to provide such accommodations an unlawful discriminatory practice.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

21-0392

04/06

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One

AN ACT requiring an employer to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 State Commission for Human Rights; Unlawful Discriminatory Practices. Amend RSA 354-A:7, VI(a)-(b) to read as follows:

VI.(a) For the purposes of this chapter, the word "sex" includes pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions [which result from pregnancy].

(b) [An employer shall permit a female employee to take leave of absence for the period of temporary physical disability resulting from pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions.] An employer shall provide reasonable accommodations and/or permit a female employee to take a leave of absence for the period of temporary physical disability resulting from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless such employer can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the employer's business. When the employee is physically able to return to work, her original job or a comparable position shall be made available to her by the employer unless business necessity makes this impossible or unreasonable.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.