Pregnant women who face discrimination in the workplace, such as being prohibited from having additional bathroom breaks or being required to stand for extended periods, will have a legal recourse to address their complaints beginning next spring.

On Thursday, three years after the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act was first introduced by now-retired Amherst state Rep. Ellen Story, the Massachusetts Legislature approved the law, which guarantees reasonable accommodations and safety measures for pregnant employees and makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against, refuse to employ or terminate an individual due to pregnancy or a condition related to pregnancy, such as lactation or the need to express breast milk for nursing a child.

The bill, which awaits a signature from Gov. Charlie Baker, will go into effect April 1, 2018.

Story said Friday that the bill is about ensuring fair treatment of women who are pregnant and gives them an option to sue if the issues they face are not resolved through conversations with their supervisors or human resources departments.

“I am grateful that it’s finally going to become law,” said Story, who filed the legislation in 2015 after the Hadley-based MotherWoman, an advocacy group for working mothers, informed her about challenges some women with normal pregnancies were having in the workplace. “It took much longer than it should have, and it’s still amazing we need a law like this in 2017,” she said.

Story said the legislation guarantees that simple measures will exist at all workplaces, such as providing a stool for a pregnant woman who otherwise would have to stand all day or limiting the weight a pregnant woman must lift.

Senate President Stan Rosenberg, D-Amherst, said in a statement that no expectant mother should have to choose between a healthy pregnancy and being paid.

“This legislation would ensure that women’s medical needs are addressed without imposing undue burden on employers throughout Massachusetts,” Rosenberg said.

Reasonable accommodations outlined in the legislation include time off to recover from childbirth; more frequent, longer paid or unpaid breaks; procuring or modifying equipment or seating; obtaining temporary transfer, job restructuring or lighter duty; and private non-bathroom space for expressing breast milk.

The Legislature heard testimony on the bill, including from Northampton resident Lisa Newman, who said she is excited by the passage and thanks MotherWoman, advocates for pregnant women and legislators for its passage.

“I know firsthand how the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will protect pregnant women and their babies,” Newman said.

Newman was working at Smith College when she testified she was written up by her former supervisor after a pregnancy-related bathroom break made her late to a meeting, and that the supervisor forced her to sit facing the clock at subsequent meetings as punishment. Newman lodged a Title IX complaint against the college.

Smith College officials have disputed her assertions and have stated that the college takes matters of discrimination and employee rights seriously.

Other senators also issued statements voicing their reasons for supporting the bill.

“This piece of legislation would ensure that employers are fair to pregnant workers so that they may continue to work while pregnant and provide the best life possible for themselves and their families,” said Sen. Joan Lovely, D-Salem.

“The protections included in this legislation are commonsense and simply prevent mistreatment of pregnant employees. said Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester, chairman of the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development.

The law specifically prohibits employers from:

• taking adverse action against an employee who requests or uses a reasonable accommodation;

• denying an employment opportunity to an employee based on the need of the employer to make a reasonable accommodation;

• requiring an employee to accept an accommodation if the accommodation is unnecessary to enable the employee to perform the essential functions of the job;

• requiring an employee to take a leave of absence if another reasonable accommodation may be provided without undue hardship to the employer;

• and refusing to hire a person who is pregnant because of the pregnancy or because of a condition related to the person’s pregnancy if that person can perform the essential functions of the job with a reasonable accommodation that does not impose an undue hardship on the employer.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.

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