Elizabeth Warren and the Persistent Problem of Pregnancy Discrimination: The Broadsheet

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Drunk Elephant gets acquired for $845 million, Simone Biles is the most decorated gymnast in history, and Elizabeth Warren gets us thinking about pregnancy discrimination. Have a wonderful Wednesday.

EVERYONE'S TALKING

- Pregnancy problems. By now, you've likely heard the hubbub over Elizabeth Warren's story of losing her teaching job because she was pregnant. If not, here's a quick refresher:

Warren has often talked about the experience on the stump. At the end of her first year as a special needs teacher at a public elementary school—she was 22 and "visibly pregnant" at the time—she says the school principal "told me the job I’d already been promised for the next year would go to someone else.” She's often pinpointed it as the moment her career turned from education toward law, then politics.

Earlier this week, a conservative news outlet challenged the account, citing minutes from a school board meeting at which Warren's contract was approved for renewal. Other reports have pointed to early interviews in which the candidate did not mention being forced out of the job. Warren has pushed back firmly on the idea that she mischaracterized the experience, saying her contract was renewed before she was noticeably pregnant and that, as she's moved further into public life, she's become more comfortable talking about the discrimination she faced back then. (This New York Times story does a nice job of laying out all the details.)

But rather than dive into the specifics of what happened to Warren in 1971, let's focus on the broader reality of pregnancy discrimination that her story hints at: while there are certainly situations where women are explicitly fired because of their pregnancy, many situations are more insidious—as Emma reported today. Pregnant women may face hiring discrimination, be overlooked for promotions and plum projects, or a host of other slights that can derail their careers and endanger their jobs. And such mistreatment can dog them into their lives as working moms. As Joan Williams, director of the Center for WorkLife Law at the University of California, Hastings College of Law, told Emma, pregnancy discrimination is part of what she calls the "maternal wall" or "family responsibilities" discrimination, a category that also includes bias based on breastfeeding, motherhood, or accommodations needed during pregnancy rather than the pregnancy itself. "It's the single strongest form of gender discrimination," says Williams.

I'd wager that more than a few Broadsheet readers have encountered some form of pregnancy discrimination in your careers. If you'd like to share your stories, email me at kristen.bellstrom@fortune.com. As usual, we may use your responses in a future Broadsheet, so please let me know if you'd like to remain anonymous.

Kristen Bellstrom
kristen.bellstrom@fortune.com
@kayelbee

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- The Elephant in the room. Drunk Elephant, the cult favorite beauty brand founded by Tiffany Masterson, was acquired by Shiseido for an eye-popping $845 million. Drunk Elephant is reportedly on track for more than $100 million in sales in 2019. Bloomberg

- Simone soars. Simone Biles is now the most decorated female gymnast in history. Biles won her 21st World Championship medal in Stuttgart, Germany yesterday; 15 of those medals are gold, another record. Plus, the 22-year-old got two more signature moves named after her, an honor awarded after an athlete submits the move for consideration and successfully lands it at a major competition. CNN

- VP Vestager. Margrethe Vestager testified in confirmation hearings for her appointment as the European Commission's VP in charge of all things digital, along with a second term as competition commissioner. Her plan of attack includes acting against companies that dodge their tax obligations and suck up vast amounts of users’ data without making clear how it is being monetized. Fortune

- In and out. Safra Catz's Oracle is set to hire 2,000 employees in a push for cloud computing. Over at Micky Onvural's Bonobos, layoffs will affect a few dozen employees at the Walmart-owned men's apparel brand. Walmart is looking to cut losses in its e-commerce division.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Christine M. McCarthy, senior EVP and CFO of The Walt Disney Company, is joining P&G’s board of directors. A shakeup in U.K. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn's office sees chief of staff Karie Murphy "seconded to Labour headquarters to lead the party’s election efforts" alongside political director Amy Jackson. Harvard Business School senior lecturer Allison Mnookin joins the board of Bill.com. Hanky Panky named Brenda Berger co-CEO alongside founder Lida Orzeck.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

- Celanese split. Celanese, the Fortune 500 chemicals producer led by CEO Lori Ryerkerk, is reportedly considering breaking itself up. The $14.8 billion company has three main business segments. Bloomberg

- Back on track. After Jennifer Hyman's Rent the Runway stopped accepting new customers amid a supply-chain crisis last week, the clothing rental service is back up and running. Returning to usual business a few days earlier than expected could help the service, which depends on a reputation for reliability for big events. Fortune

- Pay stubs. Court filings in the gender discrimination case between the U.S. Women's National Team and the U.S. Soccer Federation revealed the most detailed compensation figures yet. Carli Lloyd, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, and Becky Sauerbrunn each earned a total of $1.1 million to $1.2 million for their national-team play between 2014 and 2019. The highest-paid men's player earned $993,967 in that time frame—but played far fewer games and didn't win two World Cups. The USWNT says those four players would have at least $2.5 million more over six years with equal pay. Wall Street Journal

- Poland polls. Elections are happening in Poland on Sunday, and the country has shifted to the right—but among young people there's a significant gender divide. Among men aged 18-30, 62% supported nationalist, populist, or far-right parties. Among women in the same age bracket, 55% supported liberal or leftwing parties. Guardian

Today's Broadsheet was produced by Emma Hinchliffe. Share it with a friend. Looking for previous Broadsheets? Click here.