Amazon discriminated against thousands of pregnant workers: lawsuit | Latest Tech News
Amazon was sued on Tuesday in a proposed nationwide class motion accusing the retailer of systematically discriminating against thousands of pregnant workers, including by firing some it claimed took an excessive amount of time off.
According to a grievance filed by 4 former warehouse workers, Amazon routinely violates federal and New York worker-protection legal guidelines by denying pregnant employees basic lodging such as chairs, lavatory and water breaks, and time off for prenatal appointments.
The grievance said Amazon threatens and often fires pregnant workers who miss an excessive amount of work, and illegally calls for medical documentation from those searching for lodging. It said these actions violate the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and New York labor law.
According to a grievance filed by 4 former warehouse workers, Amazon routinely violates federal and New York worker-protection legal guidelines by denying pregnant employees basic lodging such as chairs, lavatory and water breaks, and time off for prenatal appointments. Getty Images
“Amazon is one of this country’s largest employers, [and] it is no surprise that many of its workers become pregnant,” according to the grievance filed in the Brooklyn, New York, federal court. “Yet Amazon violates the law at every turn.”
Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokesperson, said the retailer gives pregnancy-related lodging to tens of thousands of workers yearly, and authorized more than 99.9% of requests in the last 12 months. “Ensuring the health and well-being of our employees is one of our greatest responsibilities,” she said.
The lawsuit seeks misplaced pay and advantages, punitive damages, and an injunction against discrimination against pregnant workers.
Amazon has long confronted complaints in court about its treatment of workers, including those searching for to unionize.
The Seattle-based retailer is the second-largest US non-public employer, trailing Walmart, with 1.58 million full-time and part-time workers at the end of 2025. AP Photo/Michael Sohn
The Seattle-based retailer is the second-largest US non-public employer, trailing Walmart, with 1.58 million full-time and part-time workers at the end of 2025.
Hospitalization led to dismissal, lawsuit says
Tuesday’s lawsuit was filed by A Better Balance, a nonprofit that advocates for employees’ rights.
It got here 11 months after New Jersey sued Amazon, accusing it of widespread discrimination against warehouse workers who had disabilities or have been pregnant. New York filed a related case in 2022.
Amazon has long confronted complaints in court about its treatment of workers, including those searching for to unionize. USA TODAY Network via GWN Connect
One plaintiff, Willamina Barclay, said Amazon gave her a termination warning on June 17, 2025, sooner or later after she was taken in a wheelchair out of its Rochester, NY, warehouse and hospitalized with a pregnancy-related emergency.
Barclay said she was struggling extreme stomach pain from lifting heavy objects, but Amazon claimed the hospital go to pushed her over her restrict for unpaid time off, and docked her because she “worked partially that day.”
She was fired 5 days later, the grievance said.
Nantel said the 4 plaintiffs’ accounts “contain inaccuracies and omit important details.”
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission plans in November to suggest modifications to laws underlying the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
That company has aligned itself with President Trump’s insurance policies, and EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas said in 2024 that the laws for pregnant workers are too broad.
The EEOC didn’t immediately reply to requests for remark. The workplace of New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, whose predecessor filed that state’s lawsuit, didn’t immediately reply to related requests.
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