Warwick Teachers' Union Local 915 v. School Committee

Marsha Sousa, a member of the Warwick Teachers’ Union (the union) and an employee of the school Committee of the City of Warwick (the school committee), missed 13 days of work between February 14 and March 11, 1975. The absence was due to a pregnancy-related illness which occurred subsequent to the birth of her child. While the collective-bargaining agreement gives each teacher up to 90 days of annual fully paid sick leave, it also stipulates that a teacher shall not receive any salary during a maternity leave. The school committee, relying on the maternity-leave proviso, denied the request…