On Monday, the Supreme Judicial Court held that the protections of the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act ("MMLA") are limited to a period of eight weeks. The MMLA provides that a female employee "who is absent from such employment for a period not exceeding eight weeks for the purpose of giving birth ... shall be restored to her previous, or a similar, position with the same status, pay, length of service credit and seniority, wherever applicable, as of the date of her leave." In Global NAPs, Inc. v. Awiszus, the Court explained that a female employee who was terminated while on leave did not have a claim under the statute because her maternity leave exceeded eight weeks.