
Join us for IWPR’s 2026 Power+ Summit, The Power Grid: Driving Gender Equity Forward, taking place September 28–29 in Detroit, MI.
Together, we will spark bold ideas, share breakthroughs, and shape the future of gender equity.
By Safia Samee Ali
How pregnancy or the possibly of pregnancy is perceived in the workplace is potentially a problem for all women, said Heidi Hartmann, president of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.
“A pregnancy penalty doesn’t just hurt mothers or expectant women, married women or even childbearing women, it’s a bias that’s applied to all women,” said Hartmann.
“Nowadays employers probably don’t think they’re safe until that woman is [around] 49, but even then I don’t know.”

Join us for IWPR’s 2026 Power+ Summit, The Power Grid: Driving Gender Equity Forward, taking place September 28–29 in Detroit, MI.
Together, we will spark bold ideas, share breakthroughs, and shape the future of gender equity.