Reports & Toolkits

It Shouldn't Be a Heavy Lift: Fair Treatment for Pregnant Workers

June 18, 2013

Almost 35 years after the Pregnancy Discrimination Act made it illegal to discriminate against a woman because of her pregnancy, women still face discrimination on the job when they become pregnant. This report details what happens when some workers ask for temporary modifications of their job duties because of pregnancy, such as avoiding heavy lifting, staying off high ladders, or being permitted to sit down during a long shift. 

50 Years & Counting: The Unfinished Business of Achieving Fair Pay

June 10, 2013

THE EQUAL PAY ACT is the landmark law passed 50 years ago that requires employers to pay men and women equally for substantially equal work. Yet 50 years later, equal pay is still America’s unfinished business. 

Getting the Coverage You Deserve: What to Do If You Are Charged a Co-Payment, De

Getting the Coverage You Deserve: What to Do If You Are Charged a Co-Payment, Deductible, or Co-Insurance for a Preventive Service

May 22, 2013
The National Women’s Law Center has been working hard to make sure women and their families know about the preventive coverage provided through the health care law. We’ve heard from many women about how much this coverage has helped them but we’ve also heard about some women encountering problems while trying to get these services without cost-sharing. This toolkit is designed to provide women with information on the coverage of preventive services in the health care law and tools they can use if they encounter problems with this coverage. We have also provided detailed instructions on how to file an appeal with insurance companies and draft appeal letters on a range of preventive services.


President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2014 Budget: Key Provisions for Women and Their Families

April 30, 2013

This report summarizes the provisions with the largest impact on women and families in the President's Fiscal Year 2014 Budget.

Obama Plan Fails to Adequately Protect Long-Term Social Security Beneficiaries from Chained CPI

April 16, 2013

This analysis examines how effective the bump-ups for long-term beneficiaries that President Obama proposed in his FY 2014 budget would be in protecting the typical single elderly woman from the effects of the chained CPI.

Education Data Show Gender Gap in Career Preparation

April 03, 2013

This report, which examines the gender gap in career and technical education to prepare women for jobs in these fields, was prepared as a summary of an analysis by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, the National Women’s Law Center, and Wider Opportunities for Women, under the auspices of the National Coalition of Women and Girls in Education and the National Coalition on Women, Jobs and Job Training.

Chained CPI Imposes Painful Social Security Benefit Cuts and a Benefit Bump-Up Provides Only Limited Relief

December 14, 2012

Toolkit for Advocates

October 23, 2012

The toolkit for advocates includes outreach tips and tools to help families claim valuable tax credits.

Insecure and Unequal: Poverty and Income Among Women and Families, 2000-2011

September 17, 2012

This report provides a gender analysis of national Census data for 2011, released by the Census Bureau in September 2012. The National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) supplies this analysis, as it has for several years, because little information broken out by gender is available directly from the Census Bureau's series of reports titled Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States. Insecure and Unequal provides a snapshot of poverty and income data in 2011 – and changes in poverty and the wage gap from 2010 to 2011 and since 2000  - for women, men, children, and families by race, ethnicity and age.

Contraceptive Equity Laws in Your State: Know Your Rights - Use Your Rights, A Consumer Guide

August 27, 2012

Access to safe and reliable contraception is an essential component of health care for women. The health care law, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), appropriately recognizes contraception as a key preventive health service for women, and requires all new insurance plans to provide coverage of the full range of FDA-approved contraceptives without cost-sharing for women. Before this important national victory for women’s health, some health insurance plans excluded coverage for prescription contraceptives even while covering other prescription drugs and devices and preventive care. That gender gap in health care coverage was challenged by states all across the country, which specifically passed laws to require contraceptive equity in health insurance coverage. There are 26 states with contraceptive equity laws. These state laws are the focus of this Consumer Guide.