Every summer, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., helps his colleagues celebrate “Seersucker Day” in the U.S. Senate. Next year, he should think about adding a new accessory to his summer sartorial splendor: a “Kick Me” sign.
That tag accurately describes how Cassidy allowed the professional left to play him like a fiddle in creating a proposed new federal mandate for abortion leave. Cassidy says he objects to the new regulation, but he doth protest too much — because the mandate was in many ways his own doing.
Pregnant Worker Bill
The issue revolves around the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), added as a Cassidy-sponsored amendment to last December’s omnibus spending bill. Supporters of this amendment said it would give pregnant women a right to reasonable accommodations — for instance, more bathroom breaks, or the right to carry water on the job — so they could remain in the workforce during and immediately after their pregnancies.
A twist occurred when the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in releasing proposed rules implementing the legislation, said it would define abortion as part of “pregnancy, childbirth, or other related medical conditions” entitled to protection under the new statute.
The regulation makes clear that nothing in the new law requires or prohibits employers from paying for abortion procedures themselves. (The Cassidy amendment, unlike earlier versions of the legislation, made this fact clear.) It also adds that nothing in the law or regulations would require employers to provide paid leave in excess of what they already offer
