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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
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David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 27, 2009 / 4 Sivan 5769
Pregnancy guarantees job security?
By
John Stossel
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Sales consultant Holly Waters says she was a top performer for
the drug maker Novartis. But when she was about go on maternity leave, she
was fired.
"I was seven-and-a-half months pregnant. There was no way I was
going to be able to go out and find a job at this point," she told me for my
ABC special "You Can't Even Talk About It".
Waters knew the law is on her side. The Pregnancy Discrimination
Act makes it illegal to fire, or not hire, a woman because she is pregnant.
The law even restricts workplace speech. Employers are warned that in a job
interview they must never ask questions like, "Might you start a family?"
If Congress thought the law would end claims of workplace
discrimination, it was wrong, as usual. Companies are increasingly being
sued. Even a maternity-clothing chain was sued.
Waters's lawyer, David Sanford, filed a class-action lawsuit
against Novartis. "If you get pregnant, you're in trouble at Novartis," he
told me.
Novartis denies wrongdoing and points out that Working Mother
magazine named it one of America's 100 best companies for women.
Sanford claims that his $200-million lawsuit will teach Novartis
and other companies not to discriminate.
But Carrie Lukas says such lawsuits do more harm than good.
Lukas is also a working mom, vice president of the Independent Women's Forum
(www.iwf.org).
"If my employer decides they no longer want me as an employee,
then it should be their right to fire me." she told me. "I understand the
desire for people to have government step in and try to protect women, but
there's real costs to government intervention."
These costs are rarely talked about publicly. But once Congress
creates protected groups, some employers avoid hiring members of those
groups. After the Americans with Disabilities Act became law, it was assumed
more disabled people would enter the workplace. But a study by economists at
MIT found employment actually "dropped sharply" .
Likewise, "pregnancy protection" creates problems for women.
"Sometimes laws that are intended to help women like me actually
end up hurting women like me," Lukas said. "All of a sudden, a potential
employer is looking at me and thinking, 'She just might turn around and sue
us.' That makes it less likely that I'm going to get hired. You raise the
cost of hiring a woman like me."
And while some pregnant women work harder than any man, she
says, let's be honest: Most pregnant workers impose costs on employers.
"Responsibilities are shifted each time I go to a doctor's
appointment," Lukas said. "That means I'm unavailable to do whatever work
needs to be done during that time, which means one of my colleagues is often
picking up the slack."
As free-market economists have long suggested, there's a way to
resolve such a conflict: voluntary exchange for mutual benefit. Carrie and
her employer made a deal that works for both of them. She works fewer hours
and earns less money.
I confronted Sanford with the idea that lawsuits he files
actually harm women because companies view them as potential lawsuit bombs.
He was unfazed: "If they do take that position, they'd be
violating the law. If companies lose money because of it and they may
that's not necessarily a bad thing from a societal perspective."
I think it's a very bad thing. Employment and productivity
matter. But viewers agreed with him. I got hate mail:
"It is unbelievable that ABC would consider airing this piece!
… This turns back the clock 30 years, and Betty Friedan is rolling in her
grave!"
"What in the heck is wrong with you, John Stossel? This kind of
backwards thinking only exists in third world countries."
"Fire Stossel."
How would the job market work without discrimination laws?
"You don't have to hire me, and I don't have to work for you,"
answers Carrie Lukas.
Who would hire pregnant women?
"Plenty of employers. … Women are incredibly productive
members of the workforce," Lukas said. "We have a lot to offer. If an
employer is going to discriminate against enough people, it's going to be
bad for them in the long run. It's a bad business practice. And that's the
best way to prevent discrimination."
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JUST OUT FROM STOSSEL
Myths, Lies and Downright Stupidity: Get Out the Shovel --- Why Everything You Know Is Wrong
Stossel mines his 20/20 segments for often engaging challenges to conventional wisdom, presenting a series of "myths" and then deploying an investigative journalism shovel to unearth "truth." This results in snappy debunkings of alarmism, witch-hunts, satanic ritual abuse prosecutions and marketing hokum like the irradiated-foods panic, homeopathic medicine and the notion that bottled water beats tap. Stossel's libertarian convictions make him particularly fond of exposes of government waste and regulatory fiascoes. Sales help fund JWR.
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JWR contributor John Stossel is co-anchor of ABC News' "20/20." To comment, please click here.
© 2009, by JFS Productions, Inc.
Distributed by Creators Syndicate, Inc.
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