Delanoy v. Township of Ocean

On August 5, 2020, the ACLU of New Jersey and ACLU Women’s Rights Project submitted an amicus brief on behalf of twelve gender and reproductive justice organizations in this case that provides the NJ Supreme Court its first opportunity to consider application of New Jersey Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, a law passed in 2014 to provide more protections for pregnant workers. In this appeal, a police department policy made it more difficult for pregnant workers to be assigned to light duty, including requiring that they use up all of their paid time off before their due date. The brief explains that the NJPWFA intended for employers to affirmatively accommodate pregnancy, thereby ensuring that pregnant workers are not forced to leave the workplace and risk their economic security in order to maintain a healthy pregnancy and that the policy violates the new requirements of the law. It also argues that the NJPWFA’s protections for pregnant police officers are critical to addressing the extreme gender disparities in New Jersey law enforcement agencies.