Legal Question in Employment Law in Washington

Re: Discrimination For Having Kids

Discrimintion in compensation on the basis of an increase in insurance costs due to pregnancy and/or birth is in most cases a violation of both Title VII (provided your employer has at least 15 employees) and of state law. It likely is also a violation of the anti-retaliation provisions of the federal law known as ERISA, which governs employee benefit plans.

The important part of your message, however, is the fact you have secretely tape recorded a conversation with your supervisor. Doing so may very well be a violation of criminal and/or civil provisions, including federal law. In virtually all cases, it is illegal to tape record an in-person meeting without the consent of all parties. Secret taping, accordingly, exposes the person doing the taping to liability and almost always is not admissible in court.

The above does not constitute legal opinion and is offered for the

purposes of discussion only. The law differs in every jurisdiction, and

you should not rely on any opinion except that of an attorney you have

retained, who has a professional duty to advise you after being fully

informed of all the pertinent facts and who is familiar with the

applicable law.

Re: Discrimination For Having Kids

RCW 49.60 prohibits discrimination on the basis of a person's marital status by their employer. A prima facie case of marital status discrimination under RCW 49.60.180(3) requires an employee to prove both that the employer discriminated against the employee based on their marital status, and that the discrimination was not justified or excused by business necessity. The employee must prove that the marital status was a substantial factor in the employer's adverse employment decision.

Here, there may be a business justification for the failure to give a bonus. I recommend you contact an attorney in your local jurisdiction to discuss whether this action was justified.

Of particular note, you secret recording of you manager is illegal, and cannot be introduced into evidence any may subject you criminal charges in the relevant jurisdiction.