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Pregnancy gets punishing at work

Washington, March 4:Partiality and workplace discrimination worsen with the weakening economy and pregnant women often suffer badly, according to two recent studies by professors at the George Mason University and the Rice University.

A pregnant woman has high chances of becoming a victim of discrimination at work, and the bias only rises with the sliding economy.

People tend to feel threatened by outside factors such as finances, leading to a rise in discrimination at workplace. Feelings easily waver in times of economic strife and the outcome works against those carrying a baby in their womb.

One study involved evaluation of a pregnant or non-pregnant applicant for male- or female-typed jobs, by 81 adults. It was found that pregnant women were unwelcome for traditionally "masculine" jobs such as corporate lawyer, janitor, high school math teacher or general surgeon.

Discrimination with pregnant women at work is usually backed by reasons such as: the applicant "would complain a lot" or "would expect to have their work done for them".

Eden King of Mason, Michelle Hebl of Rice, co-wrote with their collaborators that people who support diversity programs have varying attitudes in times of economic trouble.

In another study, the researchers found that the women who asked about job opportunities when wearing the pregnancy prosthesis faced significantly more interpersonal hostility than when they inquired about jobs while appearing to be non-pregnant.

"The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibits formal discrimination against pregnant women in all federal jobs and in companies with 15 or more employees," said King.

Pregnant women were also found to be the victims of physical touching and over-friendly behavior. Salespersons at retail stores tend to have rude, anxious, short, and patronizing behaviors towards women, after noticing their bulging belly.

The two studies suggest that pregnant women who pursue jobs, especially the "masculine" ones, might get hired but they still face a huge risk of being discriminated against. The study is published in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

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