Trump-appointed federal judge temporarily blocks Biden's abortion rule for employers in two states

A judge on Monday temporarily blocked a federal rule in two Southern states that would have required employers to provide time off and accommodations to employees seeking abortions.

US District Court Judge David Joseph, appointed by former President Donald Trump, issued an order preventing the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) from enforcing a rule in Mississippi and Louisiana which would require employers to provide accommodations for abortions, even if they did not issue a broader rule. national mandate, for court proceedings The rule was scheduled to go into effect on Tuesday and would have done so dictated that abortions be included under the definition of “pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical considerations,” thus requiring employers with at least 15 employees to provide time off to their workers for abortions and related recovery.

Joseph found that the EEOC exceeded its statutory authority in its implementation of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, usurping congressional authority in the process, according to court documents. As a result of that finding, he ordered the agency to halt implementation of its abortion rule in Louisiana and Mississippi while its legality is litigated in court.

EEOC officials used language in the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which passed with bipartisan support in 2022, to require employers to provide abortion accommodations to their workers, the 'Associated Press. reported. Republican lawmakers who supported the legislation were angered when they learned the bill would be used to strengthen access to abortion.

“The EEOC hijacked a bipartisan protection for pregnant women and their babies by imposing a national abortion accommodation mandate,” said Laura Wolk Slavis, an attorney representing Catholic groups opposed to the rule, according to the P. The lawsuit was filed by four entities affiliated with the Catholic Church, as well as the state attorneys general of Mississippi and Louisiana, according to court documents.

The national director of women's entrepreneurship for Most Small Businesses, Rachel Shanklin, says the court's decision will make it “more difficult, at least temporarily”. — for women in the workplace to access abortion care”, according to the AP. “The court has left some pregnant workers who need abortion-related accommodations to fend for themselves,” said Gaylynn Burroughs, vice president of workplace justice and education at the National Women's Law Center.

While the rule requires employers to give time off to workers seeking an abortion, it does not require that time off be paid for or require employers to pay for abortion-related expenses.

The EEOC directed the Daily Caller News Foundation to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for comment on the lawsuit. The DOJ did not immediately respond to DCNF's request for comment.

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