[dmca30]

:confused: Does anyone know if it is illegal to downsize someone from there job while they are 7 months pregnant, if there is someone still working there with less time, doing the same job as the preson that was down sized?

[ballengerb1]

You would need to prove that you are a member of a protected group who was discriminated against because of his disability. The employer may have figured that you'd be leaving in another month so he decided to keep the employee who could fill the job long term. Most employees are "at will" employees and can be dismissed without cause at any time. Maybe we would benefit from knowing more about the business and your job.

[froggy7]

This is a sticky one. The law is that pregnancy has to be treated the same way that an employer treats any other short-term disability. However, it doesn't mean that a pregnant woman gains any additional protections. If, for example, it's company policy to let go any person who misses three or more days in their initial 90-day grace period, no matter why, then they can fire someone who misses three days in that time due to pregnancy-related issues.

So the question here is, would they have let someone who was out with something else (say, a back injury) go? And, if the company is truly downsizing, it's quite possible that they will elect to let go the senior employees, because they get paid more. So if the same pattern is evident in other departments, then it's probably not illegal in this situation. On the other hand, if they say that they are downsizing, but the pregnant woman is the only one let go, that looks much more suspicious.

[ScottGem]

As Froggy indicated, the key here is who else was targeted for downsizing. If you can show you were discriminated against because of your pregnancy, then you have a case.