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Workplace pregnancy discrimination—from being passed over for promotion to even being fired—is widespread. For those who have physically demanding jobs, their employers’ refusal to accommodate their needs while pregnant can lead to miscarriages.

In a report from the New York Times, several women who worked at a Memphis, Tennessee warehouse contracted by Verizon allege that they suffered miscarriages after their supervisors ignored their requests for lighter workloads.

Erica Hayes was 23 and working at the warehouse, now owned by XPO Logistics, when she had a miscarriage. Her story, as told to the Times, is harrowing:






“It was the worst thing I have ever experienced in my life,” Hayes told the Times. She was not the only woman who miscarried while working at the warehouse. Since 2014, at least five other women have had miscarriages while being employed there; all of them had requested lighter duties, but they say that their supervisors ignored their requests. For pregnant warehouse workers—one of the fastest growing jobs in America—who are tasked with lifting heavy boxes repeatedly over long shifts, the possibility of miscarrying is elevated, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

One problem? Federal laws meant to protect pregnant workers are outdated and insufficient. As the Times noted, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which was passed in 1978, only requires companies to accommodate workers’ requests if it is already making similar accommodations for other workers. Read: shitty companies who already treat their workers badly are let off the hook.