Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce

Pexels.com/Leah Kelley

Tennessee lawmakers want to ensure pregnant workers get reasonable accommodations.

A bill reintroduced by Tennessee lawmakers Wednesday — one that would provide clarity for employers as it relates to pregnant workers and allow those workers to receive reasonable accommodations — is already gathering support from the business community across the state.

The Tennessee Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (HB 2708/SB 2520) is sponsored by Rep. Jim Coley (R-Bartlett) and Sen. Becky Duncan Massey (R-Knoxville), respectively.

“It is important that we meet the needs of our working women who are pregnant without causing undue burdens to our businesses,” Massey said.

The bill, which contains similar language to the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in the spring, would make it unlawful for employers to refuse to provide “reasonable accommodations for medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions” of an applicant or current employee.

However, if the employer believes that providing those accommodations would “impose undue hardship” on the business, then they are not required to allow those accommodations.

[pullquote-1]

The legislation also prohibits employers from requiring a pregnant employee to take leave if there are other reasonable accommodations that can be offered instead. Finally, the Act would make it unlawful for employers to take “adverse action against an employee” for requesting a reasonable accommodation.

Under the law, employees who have been “adversely affected” by an employer’s violation of these terms may bring civil action in court. That could prompt the court to issue back pay, compensatory damages, and other related financial relief.

The legislation has garnered support from several businesses across the state, as well as from the Chambers of Commerce for Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga. Two dozen businesses in the state, including Cafe Eclectic in Memphis, along with the four chambers sent a joint letter to the Tennessee General Assembly Thursday supporting the bill.

The current “patchwork of laws creates confusion and uncertainty,” the group wrote. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would establish “one clear standard, allowing us to address accommodation requests quickly and informally.”

In Tennessee, there is currently no law providing further protections for pregnant workers other than what is mandated by the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which makes it illegal for an employer with 15 or more employees to treat pregnant workers unfairly. Currently, 27 states and four cities have passed their own form of legislation guaranteeing protection and accommodations for pregnant workers.

A Better Balance

States and cities that require accommodations for pregnant workers

“As concerned Tennessee business leaders, we urge you to help boost our state’s economy by passing the Tennessee Pregnant Workers Fairness Act,” the letter reads in part. “This important legislation will provide much-needed clarity to employers and help pregnant women who need reasonable accommodations, like a stool to sit on or extra bathroom breaks, to remain healthy and safe on the job, unless it would create an undue hardship for the business.”

The bill, which promotes healthier pregnancies and babies, will lead to lower health-care costs for employers and the state, the letter continues.

“Providing reasonable accommodations also keeps our valuable employees working and reduces turnover and training costs,” the letter said. “These types of accommodations are temporary and can typically be provided for a very low cost or no cost at all.”

The letter also points to Tennessee as ranking 41st in the nation for the number of women participating in the labor force.

“Given our historically low unemployment rate and tight labor market, it is important to ensure that everyone who is willing and able to work can do so,” the letter reads. “In order for our businesses and economy to continue to grow and prosper, we must make it easier for women to join and remain in the workforce.”

“We wake up every morning and decide what we are NOT going to do today.” Phil Trenary must have told me that a thousand times during my time at the Greater Memphis Chamber. It was not a testament to laziness, but the perfect prescription for effectiveness at an organization like the Chamber, which Phil led as president and executive director from 2014 until his untimely death last week.

Phil breathed new life into a heritage organization. It didn’t always get the publicity of a revived Overton Square or the rebirth of Crosstown or a remodeled brewery Downtown, but the changes Phil brought to the Chamber were just as extraordinary and just as important for the transformation of Memphis.

Phil was pivotal to the growth of the Chairman’s Circle, creating an activist group of CEOs that would endeavor to work in the trenches toward the goal of pushing Memphis to live up to its potential. The first major move of the Chairman’s Circle included removing government funding from the Chamber, which allowed the business community to begin to partner with and advocate for our local governments, a role that had been distinctively absent for decades.

Because of Phil’s leadership in bringing these advocates together, Memphis has seen increased funding for pre-K, collaboration on economic development, and a stronger Memphis presence in Nashville, working for our community’s priorities with the state legislature and governor.

Phil made sure that the Chamber was focused on economic growth, not for economic growth’s sake, but because he wanted the best outcomes for the people in our community just as much as he wanted to attract new business. He knew that in order to see true growth, dealing with issues such as poverty, education, and creating higher-paying jobs was essential to move our city forward. What kind of business organization thinks like that? One led by Phil Trenary.

Shortly after the I-40 bridge protest in the summer of 2016, the Chamber found itself picketed by the Coalition of Concerned Citizens. What did Phil do? He went outside and talked with them. As Phil put it, “They want what we want, and if the Coalition thinks they need to protest us, then that is our fault for not telling them what we are doing.”

The loss of Phil Trenary will be felt most acutely, of course, by his family. My heart, my prayers, and my love go out to all of them. But, make no mistake about what we are not going to do today — and for all the tomorrows to follow. We are not going to let the life of a man who loved our city become a cautionary tale of those who hate it. We are not going to allow a man who lived for bringing jobs and businesses to Memphis, to become, in death, a reason for them to stay away. And we will not allow a person who was so focused on the good in our community to become a shorthand for the tragedy that can also be found here.

We are going to continue to believe in Memphis, the way Phil Trenary believed in Memphis. We are going to continue to see that all of us want the same thing for our community and it’s on us if we can’t work together to understand that.

Shea Flinn is the former senior vice president of the Chairman’s Circle of the Greater Memphis Chamber.