More than 250,000 women a year are denied their requests for pregnancy accommodation, according to a 2013 survey by Childbirth Connection, a project of the National Partnership for Women & Families. More than half the women surveyed said they did not request an accommodation because they feared retaliation.

A recent study by the National Partnership for Women & Families found that many pregnant women are denied even the simplest accommodations, such as extra bathroom breaks.

“Women in service jobs and clock-in jobs don’t even bother asking for workplace accommodations because they are afraid to ask,” said Vicki Shabo, vice president of the National Partnership for Women and Families.

The majority of new moms say they worked while they were pregnant, yet their employers often failed to accommodate their pregnancies before giving birth or their needs afterward, according to a new survey from the National Partnership for Women & Families.

It’s now usual for women to work professionally while pregnant, but many encounter significant barriers to success on the job, according to a survey brief released by the National Partnership for Women & Families.

About a quarter of poverty spells in the U.S. – when income falls below what’s needed for basic living expenses – begin with the birth of a child, according to a 2005 study from the National Partnership for Women and Families.