Amazon hit with class action lawsuit alleging widespread discrimination against pregnant employees

Amazon was hit with a proposed nationwide class action lawsuit Tuesday, alleging the company systematically discriminated against thousands of its pregnant employees by firing some who took too much time off.

Four former warehouse employees filed the complaint, citing that Amazon routinely violated federal and New York worker-protection laws by denying pregnant workers basic accommodations like bathroom and water breaks, chairs, or time off for prenatal appointments, according to Reuters.

The Seattle-based retailer allegedly threatened and regularly fired its pregnant employees who missed too much work, and illegally demanded medical documentation from employees seeking accommodations, according to the complaint obtained by Reuters. The complaint also noted that those actions violated the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and New York labor law.

“Amazon is one of this country’s largest employers, [and] it is no surprise ​that many of its workers become pregnant,” according to the complaint. “Yet Amazon violates the ​law at every turn.”

Amazon pushed back, calling the plaintiffs’ accounts inaccurate

Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel stated that the company provides pregnancy-related accommodations to tens of thousands of employees each year, and had approved more than 99.9% of those requests in the last year.

“Ensuring the health and well-being of our employees is one of our greatest responsibilities,” Nantel said.

The lawsuit is seeking lost pay and benefits, punitive damages, and an injunction against discrimination against pregnant employees, according to Reuters.

A Better Balance, a nonprofit advocating for workers’ rights, filed the lawsuit roughly 11 months after New Jersey sued the company over widespread discrimination against warehouse employees who had disabilities or were pregnant. New York also filed a similar lawsuit in 2022.

Willamina Barclay, one of the plaintiffs, said that Amazon warned her she could be terminated on June 17, 2025, one day after she was taken in a wheelchair out of a warehouse in New York and hospitalized with a pregnancy-related emergency.

Barclay claimed that she was suffering from abdominal pain after lifting heavy objects, though Amazon claimed the hospital visit exceeded the limit of her paid time off. She was ultimately docked because she “worked partially that day.” Barclay was fired five days later, according to the complaint.

Nantel claimed that the four plaintiffs’ accounts “contain inaccuracies and omit important details.”

In 2024, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Chair Andrea Lucas said that the regulations regarding pregnant employees are too broad. Since then, the EEOC has made plans to propose changes to the regulations underlying the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act in November.

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