Peggy Young
"Peggy Young, the plaintiff in the case, worked for UPS as a pickup and delivery driver. When she became pregnant in 2006, her doctor restricted her from lifting more than 20 pounds during her first 20 weeks of pregnancy and 10 pounds for the remainder. UPS informed Young that she could not work because the company required drivers in her position to be able to lift parcels weighing up to 70 pounds. As a result, Young was placed on leave without pay and subsequently lost her employee medical coverage.
Young claims that her co-workers were willing to help her lift any packages weighing over 20 pounds and that UPS had a policy of accommodating other, non-pregnant drivers. At the time, UPS accommodated (1) drivers who were injured on the job; (2) drivers who lost their Department of Transportation certifications; and (3) drivers who suffered from a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Young brought a federal lawsuit against UPS under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1987.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to clarify that Title VII’s longstanding prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex includes a prohibition of discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Central to Young’s case, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act also requires that employers treat pregnant women “the same for all employment-related purposes . . . as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work.” It is this clause that the Supreme Court’s decision in Young v. UPSinterprets.
UPS argued that its decision not to provide an accommodation to Young was non-discriminatory because it followed a company policy that does not take pregnancy into account — a so-called “pregnancy-blind” policy. The Supreme Court disagreed, finding in Young’s favor after two lower courts had taken UPS’s side."
Morris, Liz, Cynthia Thomas Calvert, and Joan C. Williams. "What Young vs. UPS Means for Pregnant Workers and Their Bosses." Harvard Business Review. Business Law, 24 July 2015. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Young claims that her co-workers were willing to help her lift any packages weighing over 20 pounds and that UPS had a policy of accommodating other, non-pregnant drivers. At the time, UPS accommodated (1) drivers who were injured on the job; (2) drivers who lost their Department of Transportation certifications; and (3) drivers who suffered from a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Young brought a federal lawsuit against UPS under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1987.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to clarify that Title VII’s longstanding prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex includes a prohibition of discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Central to Young’s case, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act also requires that employers treat pregnant women “the same for all employment-related purposes . . . as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work.” It is this clause that the Supreme Court’s decision in Young v. UPSinterprets.
UPS argued that its decision not to provide an accommodation to Young was non-discriminatory because it followed a company policy that does not take pregnancy into account — a so-called “pregnancy-blind” policy. The Supreme Court disagreed, finding in Young’s favor after two lower courts had taken UPS’s side."
Morris, Liz, Cynthia Thomas Calvert, and Joan C. Williams. "What Young vs. UPS Means for Pregnant Workers and Their Bosses." Harvard Business Review. Business Law, 24 July 2015. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Adventures in Dadhood
"This week was my son’s 4th birthday. Grandpa sent him some money, so we decided to take him shopping so he could pick out his own present. All day long he talked about nothing but getting an “Elmo Airplane”. The problem is that the child already owns a “Dusty Airlplane”, and I’m not really interested in owning an entire plastic Air Force. Anyway, I left work early to have dinner out as a family and take him to Target, A.K.A. “Tar-Tar”. When we arrived, he giddily sprinted into the store and made a b-line to the toys. Somehow, he knew exactly where to find the themed aviation section (even though I still can’t remember where the loofahs are located after a couple of decades – and yeah, I use a loofah, what of it). Much to my relief, this store did not have the “Elmo Airplane”, so he would have to find something else – preferably something we didn’t already own. He next took me to the plastic hardware section. Previously, we had seen plastic jackhammers, reciprocating saws, jigsaws, circular saws, and arc welders. Again, however, they had nothing in stock. At this point, I had all but given up. I told him that I would take him to another Tat-Tar the next day and get him anything he wanted. Time to go home…or so I thought.
As I was carting my two other children around the back stretch and into turn three, I hear my wife calling to me as I turn to see my son toting a giant pink box. I just had a feeling that this was going to be good, so I turned my camera on to capture the moment. What followed was one of the most genuinely joy filled moments I have ever had with my son. He proceeded to plop down his prize: a pink Minnie Mouse vacuum cleaner. I was beyond tickled. Wanting to savor the moment, I asked him about it and he stomped down his foot and said, “Yep, I chose that!” Well that was good enough for me. He proceeded to inform me that he no longer wanted the jackhammer, reached into his pocket to grab his money and said, “Let’s buy this!” I could not have been more proud at that moment".
"Obsession with masculinity is simply not healthy, for you or your son. I used to go crazy when my wife would playfully put a bow in my son’s hair. But why? What harm would possibly befall my 2 year old son by allowing him to sport a pink barrette? I used to be embarrassed because during every trip to Target, my son would go straight to the girls toy aisle and grab a pink shopping card and proceed to push it around the store. Seriously. Every. Single. Time. Eventually, I bought him his own miniature shopping cart to take wherever he wanted. Admittedly, I specifically avoided buying him a pink shopping cart. Why? Because of my own insecurities about what people would think seeing my son and his little pink shopping cart."
Clint. "Unpack Your Toy Gender Baggage." Adventures in Dadhood. DADVENTURER, 20 Nov. 2016. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
As I was carting my two other children around the back stretch and into turn three, I hear my wife calling to me as I turn to see my son toting a giant pink box. I just had a feeling that this was going to be good, so I turned my camera on to capture the moment. What followed was one of the most genuinely joy filled moments I have ever had with my son. He proceeded to plop down his prize: a pink Minnie Mouse vacuum cleaner. I was beyond tickled. Wanting to savor the moment, I asked him about it and he stomped down his foot and said, “Yep, I chose that!” Well that was good enough for me. He proceeded to inform me that he no longer wanted the jackhammer, reached into his pocket to grab his money and said, “Let’s buy this!” I could not have been more proud at that moment".
"Obsession with masculinity is simply not healthy, for you or your son. I used to go crazy when my wife would playfully put a bow in my son’s hair. But why? What harm would possibly befall my 2 year old son by allowing him to sport a pink barrette? I used to be embarrassed because during every trip to Target, my son would go straight to the girls toy aisle and grab a pink shopping card and proceed to push it around the store. Seriously. Every. Single. Time. Eventually, I bought him his own miniature shopping cart to take wherever he wanted. Admittedly, I specifically avoided buying him a pink shopping cart. Why? Because of my own insecurities about what people would think seeing my son and his little pink shopping cart."
Clint. "Unpack Your Toy Gender Baggage." Adventures in Dadhood. DADVENTURER, 20 Nov. 2016. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Daniel Episcope
Daniel Episcope, who attended the University of the Pacific, stopped at a party at his fraternity one day. At the party, he talked to a girl he knew slightly, then said goodnight to her along with his friends and headed upstairs. She was drunk, and soon after he left she went into his room to pursue her interests in him, however, he had a girlfriend and was not interested at all. He made it clear to her that he didn't want to sleep with her, and then led her out of his room. As he opened his door, the girl fell to the ground screaming "Stop it! Stop it! I don't want to have sex with you!" and looked around to see if anyone was paying attention, she was trying to frame Daniel. Thankfully, no one was around, because if someone was, Daniel knew they would believe her, and he would be facing a false accusation of attempted assault.
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Male student at West Coast University
A 23-year old male student at the West Coast University faced sexual assault from a fraternity brother. One night, his roommate was really drunk, while he was sober, and started aggressively making advances towards him, like trying to rip off his pants. The male student gave all his strength to fight his roommate off, hitting him hard enough to get him off of him. He was really shooken up after the assault, and ended up leaving the house and moving somewhere else. He felt like he couldn't tell the fraternity, school, or police because he thought no one would believe him. It ate him up inside, he was constantly paranoid about being followed home and almost got to the point of wanting to drop out. He pictured himself as a female, thinking he could tell more people about the situation if he were one. He states "I feel like since i'm a guy, it's a lot harder. If something happens, guys aren't supposed to be victims. We're supposed to be manly."
Women Managers at National Grid
As an engineering major, it was typical of Sarah Richards to be the only female in her all of her classes. However, because of her being a female in a male dominated field, she feels as if she had more opportunities than her male colleagues, earning more internships and job opportunities because of her gender. Sarah went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute. During her senior year, she was offered a chance to work at National Grid. After a couple of years, when her manager retired, she and two male colleagues decided to apply and compete for the position. In the end, she got the job. Discussing gender inequality, she believes that going in a field that is dominated by the opposite gender will provide better opportunity for that person, since more schools and companies are encouraging gender equality. However, in college and even in her workplace, she still feels like stereotyping still occurs and still affects her, even after years of working in the company. She explained that when people think of engineering, they often imagine a man’s work but women can do anything a man can do and so she had to fight through barriers constructed by society.