Back in September 2014, we began discussing a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by a former ticket sales executive with the New York Mets. The lawsuit stated specifically that the team’s chief operating officer teased and humiliated the woman on multiple occasions because she wasn’t married but was having a baby. This mistreatment, the lawsuit alleged, sometimes occurred in front of other male executives.
According to the suit, the organization’s COO said that he was “morally opposed” to the woman’s pregnancy because she was single. The woman was fired in August 2014, and the complaint alleged that the firing was based on pregnancy discrimination.
You can read more details about the allegations in our previous post.
Now the former sales executive and the baseball club have settled the lawsuit, though the exact terms of the settlement were not disclosed. What is known is that the Mets have said the organization will be “more attentive to the important issues raised by women in sports,” and that the club encourages female executives.
No specific examples of how the organization intends to change were made public.
The announcement of the settlement comes at a time when New York lawmakers are considering an anti-discrimination law that would provide more protections to pregnant employees. You can read more about that legislation in our recent post, “Pregnancy discrimination law held up in New York legislature.”
When women speak up about pregnancy discrimination in the workplace, they are in a position not only to help themselves, but also to help others who might one day face a similar struggle. If you believe you have been discriminated against at work, then do not hesitate to speak with an employment law attorney.
