A proposed new law would explicitly permit pregnant women in Indiana to ask their employers for reasonable accommodations to continue working throughout their pregnancies.
The legislation, however, does not require employers to actually provide any accommodations to pregnant Hoosier women.
House Bill 1309, which won committee approval Tuesday, simply codifies the current informal way some women ask their employers for lighter duties, extra breaks, or a chair to sit on while working and pregnant.
If the measure becomes law, an employer could not retaliate against a woman for asking for pregnancy accommodations, but the employer still would be under no obligation to provide the requested assistance or grant any exception to the employer's policies.
Several women told the House Employment, Labor and Pensions Committee of pregnancies lost due to stringent workplace rules that took no consideration of pregnant employees.
But the Republican-controlled panel was reluctant to mandate businesses provide actual pregnancy accommodations as envisioned by House Bill 1358, along with authorizing the Indiana Department of Labor to investigate complaints.
"We all want healthy moms and healthy babies," said state Rep. Karen Engleman, R-Georgetown, the sponsor. "This bill (1309) will ensure there is a conversation between the women and their employers."
Enacting pregnancy accommodations is a top priority for Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb. He urged legislators in his Jan. 19 State of the State address to make Indiana the 31st state to pass a pregnancy accommodations statute.
The governor said he considers the provisions in House Bill 1309 sufficient to check that box if it were to become law.
"While I have pushed for different language to become law in each of the last two sessions, I agree with members from both sides of the aisle that voted in favor of the bill today as a step forward in assisting pregnant women in the workforce," Holcomb said.
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