In today’s News and Commentary, the Trump administration prepares to roll back pregnancy-related job protections, a federal court ruling favors an AI whistleblower, and voter enthusiasm among union members soars ahead of Election Day.

According to insiders, the Trump administration is planning to reduce the scope of regulations under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). Passed in 2022, the PWFA was meant to address a meaningful gap in disability and discrimination protection for pregnant workers. Then, in 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under the Biden administration adopted a broad reading of the PWFA’s text, resulting in many more pregnancy-related conditions and procedures being covered by the statute. However, Andrea Lucas, the current EEOC Chair, has been vocal in her disagreement with the 2024 rule and supports a narrower reading of the statute. Lucas’s proposed approach would eliminate coverage for a number of procedures, including IVF and other fertility treatments. The EEOC has not made an official comment on possible regulatory changes, but commentators expect litigation to ensue if these changes are made. For more details on the potential ramifications of a new EEOC ruling, check out Mia’s piece here.

On Monday, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sided with an AI whistleblower by lowering the evidentiary threshold required to obtain a hearing before a Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) administrative judge. Babatunde Oguntade was a former White House Presidential Fellow who was placed at the VA. He alleged he was fired in 2021 because he raised concerns about an AI tool that was meant to speed up disability claims. On Oguntade’s account, the tool in fact slowed down claims by several days. He sought a hearing before an MSPB administrative judge but was denied because the judge found that his complaint of retaliation did not constitute protected whistleblowing. The Federal Circuit disagreed. The court decided that the MSPB threw out the case too early and remanded for further determination. The Federal Circuit rarely rules against the MSPB, and commentators believe this could open the door for more AI-related grievances among the federal workforce. The Trump administration has been open about its plans to aggressively implement AI, but this ruling may provide an opportunity for employees to push back on this rapidly developing technology.

Leading up to Election Day, an AFL-CIO survey shows that enthusiasm for voting among union members is 10 percentage points higher than the last off-year vote in 2022. A number of factors appear to be at play. First, there are a wide range of candidates across the country with union backgrounds. Examples include James Talarico in Texas, Troy Jackson in Maine, and Angie Nixon in Florida. Second, the current administration is widely viewed as opposed to the labor movement, which may inspire more workers to vote against Trump-backed candidates. Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants, has called Trump “the most anti-union president in our modern history.” Finally, affordability is top of mind for many voters, and unions are seen as one way to try to keep up with rising cost of living. “When families can’t accord groceries and billionaires are buying elections, voters trust that union candidates are on their side,” said the AFL-CIO in a recent memo. American approval of labor unions is currently at the highest it has been in decades, with 71% in favor. Many hope that this sentiment will translate to results on Election Day.