In their new op-ed for Bloomberg Law, founding partner Roberta (“Robbie) Kaplan and associate Rachel Tuchman discuss the lack of parental leave rights and protection from sexual harassment and discrimination that employees of the federal judiciary face. Currently, federal judicial branch employees are not protected by federal anti-discrimination statutes, such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Judiciary Accountability Act of 2021, HR 4827, would safeguard the federal judiciary's more than 30,000 employees from discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, and other forms of workplace misbehavior. But even if these protections are enacted, obstacles would still remain for many employees including the lack of any guaranteed parental leave, which most other federal employees get under the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act. Here, Robbie and Rachel outline the current protections, the full scope of the Judiciary Accountability Act of 2021, and the importance of guaranteeing parental leave for all federal employees.
Read the full op-ed here.