Bell Guest Blogs for Modern Mom About Breastfeeding in the Workplace
Recounting the moment when, during a firm holiday party at the Cellar Bar in New York City, she passed a bottle of pumped breast milk to the bartenders and requested they put it on ice, Special Counsel Sarah Bell says she feels lucky to have an employer that supported her decision to continue breastfeeding her children upon returning to work.
In her recent guest blog for Modern Mom, Bell – who co-chairs Pryor Cashman’s Americans With Disabilities Act Defense Group and is a member of the firm's Labor + Employment practice – revealed that in spite of the recognized health benefits of nursing, many working mothers stop breastfeeding once they return to work simply because they are not afforded adequate time or privacy to pump milk or nurse their children at the office.
Bell finds this reality disheartening, especially at a time when 54% of all mothers with children under 12 months work, and 73% are employed full-time. She goes on to say that women who work following pregnancy are less likely to initiate breastfeeding and tend to nurse their children for shorter amounts of time than non-working moms. Yet, the law provides certain provisions for breastfeeding in the workplace, of which women can and should avail themselves.
Breastfeeding and Pumping in the Workplace – What Are Your Rights?
Under 2010’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, most employers are required to provide non-exempt breastfeeding employees with “reasonable break time” and a private place – which cannot be a restroom – to express milk during the workday until their child is one year old. The Act further stipulates that the “private place” must be “shielded from view and free from intrusion from co-workers and the public.”
Employers are not required to compensate employees for reasonable breaks for breastfeeding or pumping unless the employee is normally afforded compensated breaks.
Conversely, several states have passed the Right to Breastfeed Act, which permits women to breastfeed “at any location in a Federal building or on Federal property, if the woman and her child are otherwise authorized to be present at the location.”
Bell’s bottom-line advice for new mothers who plan to continue breastfeeding and working: “Don’t be afraid to ask for breastfeeding accommodations; in many cases the law supports you.”
To read the full guest blog, please click here.
More About Bell’s Practice
Knowledgeable, experienced and pragmatic, Sarah Bell provides clients with effective strategies on a wide variety of labor + employment and ADA matters, including accessibility and discrimination claims. She represents corporations, family-owned businesses and individuals in federal and state trial and appellate courts, as well as in arbitrations and mediations.
Bell is also frequently retained to help navigate ADA mandates, ensure regulatory compliance and implement courses of action to avoid potential lawsuits.
To learn more about her work in these areas, please visit here.
