Indiana push for pregnant worker protections gets sidelined
Republican lawmakers have thrown a roadblock in front of a proposal that would require more Indiana businesses to allow pregnant women to take longer breaks, transfer to less physical work and take unpaid time off after childbirth.
The GOP-dominated Indiana Senate voted 34-15 on Monday to delete the requirement from the bill and, instead, send the issue to a special committee following this year’s legislative session.
The proposal faced opposition from some business groups, including the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and the Indiana Manufacturers Association.
Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb has supported the requirement as a way of improving Indiana’s infant mortality rate, which was country’s seventh-worst with about 600 infant deaths in 2017.