A large majority of American babies are breastfed. Employers must be prepared to make lactation-related accommodations for employees who breastfeed their babies when they return to work.
Lactating parents who are away from their babies need to express milk (typically using a breast pump) on roughly the same schedule as the child’s feeding schedule to maintain their milk production and avoid health complications, which can be serious. This means that breastfeeding employees must be given lactation breaks every few hours throughout the workday and be allowed to use a clean, private space. By adopting breastfeeding-friendly policies, employers can ensure that they are in compliance with federal and state laws, as well as improve employee retention and productivity, reduce the use of sick days, and lower health care and insurance costs.
Lactation Employment Laws
Employers are required by various state and federal laws to provide break time, private space, and other reasonable 
accommodations to breastfeeding employees. Most employees nationwide are covered by the PUMP Act, which requires employers to provide nursing employees with reasonable break time and a private, non-bathroom space for expressing breast milk during the workday. Employers may also be required to accommodate breastfeeding employees under other federal laws, including the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Additionally, most states have their own break time and/or reasonable accommodation laws covering nursing workers.
There are no federal regulations interpreting the PUMP Act. However, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor, the agency responsible for enforcing the law, issued an informative Field Assistance Bulletin for DOL staff responsible for enforcing the law.
Almost all employers are required to provide their lactating employees with break time and lactation space. In many situations, these breaks must be paid. This guide explains when an employee must be paid for time spent on pumping breaks and addresses frequently asked questions.
Employers seeking advice on accommodating breastfeeding employees or addressing other family caregiving issues may wish to contact Work+Family Insight.
Work+Family Insight provides advice and consulting services to employers and their advisers on issues related to pregnancy accommodation, gender bias in the workplace, and family responsibilities discrimination.
