Leave Resources

Since 1995, Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) has provided up to 12 weeks of unpaid job protected leave in a one-year period for the following reasons:

• Leave to care for your own serious health condition or to care for a covered family member with a serious health condition
• Sick child leave
• Parental leave
• Pregnancy disability
• Military family leave
• Bereavement leave

In 2023, Oregon implemented Paid Leave Oregon (PLO), which is the state paid family and medical leave act. Early in the implementation of PLO, conflicting provisions in the OFLA and PLO statutes were recognized. The state began a process to amend the statutes. Read on to learn about the changes to Oregon’s leave policy (effective July 1, 2024).

Effective June 27, 2023, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide reasonable accommodations to a worker’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. This requirement is similar to what covered employers are already required to do for qualified individuals with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The difference is that pregnancy itself is typically not considered a disability under the ADA, so employers are not required to provide accommodations for “normal” pregnancies under the ADA. 

Continue reading to learn more about how the PWFA closes the gap to require employers to provide reasonable accommodations to all pregnant workers, regardless of whether their pregnancy has led to a condition that would qualify as a disability under the ADA.