The Effects of State Workplace Pregnancy Accommodation Laws on Women’s Employment and Income during Pregnancy

Prior to the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (2022), pregnant workers’ access to workplace accommodations depended on whether they lived in a state with a pregnancy accommodation law. Without accommodations, some pregnant women continue working, possibly endangering their health, and others are forced to exit the labor force. Using data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation 1996–2020 panels (N=8,012 births), we exploit variation in the timing of state pregnancy accommodation laws using a difference-in-differences framework to estimate their effects on women’s employment and income during pregnancy. We find these laws increase labor-force participation, employment, weeks worked per month, and earnings among all pregnant women, with larger effect sizes for less-educated women. We find less robust evidence that these laws increase household income. Our findings suggest that women are more likely to work—and work longer into their pregnancy—because of access to workplace accommodations.