A Camden County prosecutor is suing her office for denying remote work during pregnancy complications
Prosecutor Gina Imperato was able to work remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic but wasn't allowed to do so when her pregnancy made it necessary, her lawsuit says.
The Camden County Prosecutor’s Office has been sued by one of its own lawyers for allegedly denying her the ability to work remotely while pregnant, in violation of a relatively new federal law.
Gina Imperato was an assistant prosecutor for the county when she learned she was pregnant with her second child in 2023, with an expected due date in late November. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) was passed in December 2022 and took effect in June 2023.
The PWFA puts the responsibility on employers to find a reasonable accommodation when pregnant workers ask for adjustments to their work environment or schedule because of pregnancy-related needs.
Imperato started having pregnancy-related medical conditions including low blood pressure and fainting spells about halfway through her pregnancy, and her doctors restricted her ability to drive a car in late August.
In September, Imperato asked her supervisor for an accommodation to work remotely during her pregnancy. Her request was denied.
“This was a job she had done remotely for [multiple] years during the pandemic,” said Imperato’s lawyer, Jacqueline M. Vigilante. “She was forced out of work early … forced to sit home while she was able to work.”
Imperato filed her lawsuit in December. The prosecutors’ office said in a court filing last month that it had not violated the law and that Imperato was unable to perform essential functions of her job with the requested accommodation.
Camden County spokesperson Dan Keashen declined to comment on pending litigation.
Reduced time for bonding
For about a week after her initial request, Imperato worked remotely from home while she waited for an official answer on her accommodation request.
She “was able to perform all of her job duties remotely, as her responsibilities as an assistant prosecutor involved sedentary work at a computer, and assistant prosecutors are rarely required to appear in court or make in-person appearances or appointments,” the complaint said.
A few days after her request, she was told to log her time working remotely as sick leave. A few days after that, she was told to stop working remotely, and her coworkers were allegedly instructed not to discuss any work with her.
Two weeks after her request, Imperato told her office that they were in violation of the law, noting that her working remotely created no undue burden for the prosecutors’ office. The next day, the office formally denied her accommodation request and instructed Imperato to take a medical leave of absence.
Imperato had planned to take a job-protected leave under the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and New Jersey law from the baby’s birth, expected in late November, until up to six months later. Instead, the complaint said, her leave request was denied, and she was told to begin using her FMLA time in September instead of working remotely.
“Forcing plaintiff to use her sick time three months before her due date reduced the paid time off available to her for postpartum care and bonding with her newborn child,” Imperato’s complaint said.
The lawsuit alleges that the prosecutor’s office violated New Jersey antidiscrimination law as well as the PWFA. Imperato is seeking compensation for her losses as a result of the violation.
Her suit also asks the court to order that Camden County stop engaging in discriminatory employment practices and “comply with the specific accommodations set forth in the PWFA to ensure that pregnant women are not excluded from the workplace or denied opportunities which will allow them to continue to work.”