Katie Couric Says Bryant Gumbel Had ‘Sexist Attitude’ About Maternity Leave

Katie Couric says Bryant Gumbel gave her a hard time back in the day over maternity … which Katie thinks spoke to something deeper, even if he was joking.

The famed newswoman stopped by Bill Maher’s ‘Club Random’ podcast Sunday … in which she detailed the “prickly” relationship she had with Bryant during their tenure on ‘Today’ together.

Katie hinted she and Bryant were never close, referring to her coworker as a guy’s guy — but still applauded his broadcasting skills.

However, Katie claimed Bryant got a little upset at her for taking a handful of months off to have her first baby at the time. Remember, Katie and her late husband, Jay Monahan, welcomed their first of 2 daughters in 1991 — not long after she joined ‘Today.’

She says … “He got mad at me because I was doing something on maternity leave. And he was giving me endless s**t for taking like a month or two off. I was having my first baby.”

Katie said Bryant then jokingly told her she should drop her baby in a field and return to work. She added … “It was emblematic of an incredibly sexist attitude.”

Katie and Bryant overlapped at ‘Today’ for 6 years, as BG left the show in 1997 to work for CBS. Katie eventually left the network as well … famously becoming the first female anchor for “CBS Evening News.” We’ve reached out to Bryant’s legal team … no word back yet.