Court Rejects Novel EEOC Claim: Breast-Pumping Is Not Protected Under Title VII

In the recent decision in EEOC v. Houston Funding II, Ltd., et al., Case No. H-11-2442 (S.D. Tex. Feb. 2, 2012), the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas rejected a claim filed by the EEOC alleging that an employer unlawfully discriminated against a worker on the basis of her sex because she wanted to express breast-milk while at work. In its complaint, the EEOC alleged that the Houston Funding’s conduct violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991. In granting summary judgment to the employer, the Court disagreed, holding that “firing someone because of lactation or breast-pumping is not sex discrimination.” Id. at 2.

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