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HARTFORD, Conn. 鈥� The American Civil Liberties Union and the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut today filed a pregnancy discrimination charge against the Town of Cromwell, Connecticut on behalf of police officer Sarah Alicea.

The complaint was filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities. It alleges that Cromwell violated Alicea鈥檚 rights under federal and Connecticut law when the town refused to temporarily modify Alicea鈥檚 job duties, and instead forced her to take unpaid leave for the last four months of her pregnancy.

鈥淎s a woman in law enforcement, I have become accustomed to being the minority, but one thing that I did not anticipate was the unfair treatment I endured just because I decided to become a mother,鈥� said Alicea. 鈥淎fter my husband and I learned that we were expecting our 铿乺st child, we were ecstatic. Our excitement soon turned into anger and frustration at how my department and the Town of Cromwell treated me. This roller coaster of emotions and uncertainty has added an enormous amount of stress to what should be the happiest time in my life.鈥�

Previously a police officer in New London, Alicea has worked for four years in the Cromwell department as a patrol officer and, during the academic year, serves as a school resource officer. Her husband is a combat-wounded veteran and Alicea is her family鈥檚 primary breadwinner. When she notified the Cromwell police chief and town manager of her pregnancy and the physical restrictions imposed by her doctor, the town refused to discuss a temporary alternative job assignment, and instead forced Alicea to take immediate leave without pay. In contrast, the town assures that officers injured on the job who are not able to perform their usual duties still receive their full salaries.

鈥淭his case, in addition to seeking justice for Officer Alicea, is fundamentally about a woman鈥檚 right to equally participate in society,鈥� said Gillian Thomas, senior staff attorney with the ACLU鈥檚 Women鈥檚 Rights Project. 鈥淚f having a baby means losing a paycheck, the playing field will never be even.鈥�

Federal law requires covered employers, including public employers such as police departments, to treat pregnant workers the same way they treat other workers who are 鈥渟imilar in their ability or inability to work.鈥� Connecticut law goes even further, requiring employers to 鈥渕ake a reasonable effort to transfer a pregnant employee to any suitable temporary position which may be available.鈥� Alicea proposed numerous law enforcement duties she could have performed safely while pregnant, but the town rejected those alternatives.

The ACLU has previously succeeded in similar pregnancy discrimination cases, including a federal jury鈥檚 verdict against a Suffolk County, New York police department in 2006, which found the department discriminated against women officers by denying them access to limited duty positions, like working the precinct desk, during their pregnancies; and a settlement in 2013 of its complaint against the Wallingford, Connecticut police department on behalf of police officer Annie Balcastro, whom the department denied a 鈥渓ight duty鈥� assignment while she was pregnant.

A copy of the charge filed with the EEOC can be found here: /legal-document/alicea-v-cromwell-police-department-eeoc-charge