Workplace Support
Breastfeeding in Public
Our Local Heros
World Breastfeeding Week

Section 4207 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (also known as Health Care Reform), amended the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), or federal wage and hour law. The amendment requires employers to provide reasonable break time and a private, non-bathroom place for nursing mothers to express breast milk during the workday, for one year after the child’s birth. The new requirements became effective when the Affordable Care Act was signed into law on March 23, 2010. Download the text of Section 4207 only.

Additional Resources for Workplace Accommodation

Breastfeeding and Working
            Author of Working Without Weaning, great ideas for a variety of professionals and additional resources and links.

CDC Healthier Worksite Initiative, Workplace Lactation Support Program Toolkit
          Downloadable toolkit for developing a workplace Lactation Support Program. 

Department of Industrial Relations – Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE)
         Wage/hour issues, including lactation accommodation complaints.

EEOC Enforcement Guidance: Unlawful Disparate Treatment of Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities         

    Resources for caregivers facing discrimination. 

Employment Development Department

            Deals with Disability Insurance Claims (for pregnancy and such), and Paid Family Leave (baby bonding time).

International Lactation Consultants Association, Worksite Lactation Support Directory

            Resources for businesses and employees includes a directory of IBCLCs available for worksite lactation support services.

The Business Case for Breastfeeding: Steps for Creating a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite

            Downloadable toolkit to assist employers and employees with development of workplace support lactation program.

Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

            A mother flying without her child will be able to bring breast milk through the checkpoint, provided it is declared prior to screening.  Mothers flying with, and now without, their child will be permitted to bring breast milk in quantities greater than three ounces as long as it is declared for inspection at the security checkpoint.

U.S. Breastfeeding Committee, Workplace Support and Coalitions Directory

            Resources related to workplace support including issues addressed in the Affordable Care Act.

WIC – Breastfeeding for Employers

            Variety of information that employers can access including sample letters from the DIR, minimum requirements of California’s Lactation Accommodation law, other ways to support breastfeeding in the workplace, flyers for break rooms, messages for paycheck stubs, developing a breastfeeding workplace policy, and setting up a lactation room, and improving the bottom line for businesses.

Why is breastfeeding in public important? 

Some new mothers are uneasy about breastfeeding in public and need support from their family, friends, and community to become confident in their ability to breastfeed outside the home.  Fear of public embarrassment keeps many mothers confined at home which leads to early abandonment of breastfeeding. According to the most recent CDC (Centers for Disease Control) Breastfeeding Report Card, 77% of Missouri mothers begin breastfeeding but by 6 months of age only 39% continue.1   Knowing the lifelong health benefits of breastfeeding for mother and baby, we should consider how society’s attitude influences breastfeeding.

Why does public breastfeeding make some people uncomfortable?

 In western cultures most people know ‘breast is best’ but they prefer it be done privately rather than publicly. The inability to separate the feeding and sexual roles of breasts, and the lack of positive breastfeeding portrayals in media, have been identified as reasons for the attitude.2  In the UK, where breastfeeding rates are lower than the rest of Europe and public breastfeeding is unacceptable, many mothers feel restricted to their homes and stop breastfeeding.3  Even in Australia, where breastfeeding rates are high and 70% of the population considers breastfeeding in public acceptable, mothers report feeling vulnerable when feeding outside the home.4  What about mothers in our community; do you feel supported or vulnerable when breastfeeding in public?

Tips for breastfeeding in public

Perhaps our citizens need to see breastfeeding in public for it to become normal!3  We asked mothers in a breastfeeding group for suggestions5: 

• Be confident!  Practice at home in front of family or a mirror. Most people will take their cues from you; if you are confident they will feel less uncomfortable.

• Choose your clothes carefully; expensive nursing blouses or covers are not required.  Try the two-shirt technique:  simple tank tops (with holes cut to provide access to the breasts) plus button up shirt.  The tank top and baby keep you covered while nursing.  Or skip cutting the holes and just pull the tank up from the bottom.

• Buy a sling or baby carrier.  Mothers swear by the Ergo-Baby or Boba for great baby positioning and ease of breastfeeding.  Most people won’t even know he’s eating!

•  Scope out your location in advance and identify good places to breastfeed; dressing rooms work great!

• Go on about your business while nursing: eat, shop, pay for your purchases.  Distraction can create invisibility. 

• If someone challenges you, remember Missouri law (MSMo. 191.918) gives you the right to breastfeed in public anywhere you have a right to be, as long as you exercise “as much discretion as possible.”6-7 

• For more tips on how to be successful breastfeeding outside the home, click here.

For more information, check these sources:    

1Breastfeeding: Data and Statistics: Breastfeeding Report Card, United States: Outcome Indicators.  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site. Available at:                 http://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/pdf/2013BreastfeedingReportCard.pdf.  (accessed August 29, 2013).

2Scott, J.A. Attitudes to breastfeeding.  In Infant feeding practices: A cross-cultural perspective. 2011. Springer Link. Available at: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-1-4419-6873-9_3#  (accessed August 28, 2013).

3Condon, L. Cut out for breastfeeding: changing attitudes to breastfeeding. Community Practitioner, 2010; 83(40): 29-31.   Available at: http://www.biomedsearch.com/article/Cut-out-breastfeeding-changing-attitudes/222253169.html   (accessed August 28, 2013).

4Meng, X., Daly, A., Pollard, C.M., Binns, C.W. Community attitudes toward breastfeeding in public places among western Australian adults.  Journal of Human Lactation, 2013; 29(2):183-189.  Available at: http://jhl.sagepub.com/content/29/2/183  (accessed August 28, 2013).

5Breastfeeding: Breastfeeding in Public. Office on Women’s Health: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Web site.  Available at: http://womenshealth.gov/breastfeeding/breastfeeding-in-public/index.html  (accessed August 28, 2013).

6Issues and Research: Health: Breastfeeding Laws: State Breastfeeding Laws.  National Conference of State Legislatures. Available at: http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/health/breastfeeding-state-laws.aspx  (accessed August 28, 2013). 

7Missouri Revised Statutes: Chapter 191: Health and Welfare. Breastfeeding in public permitted. August 28, 2012.  Available at: http://health.mo.gov/living/families/wic/breastfeeding/laws.php  (accessed August 28, 2013).

Remember, breastfeeding outside the home is important to normal breastfeeding in our culture. When you “take it on the road” not only are you nourishing your baby, you are helping to change the culture of our community.

The Greater Ozarks Regional Breastfeeding Coalition asked local mothers about their experiences breastfeeding outside the home, and mothers nominated 25 local businesses for recognition.  During World Breastfeeding Week (August 1-7, 2013), we awarded these heroes a “You’ve been Spotted” certificate and our heartfelt thanks.  Most recipients were surprised to be recognized for what they consider “reasonable customer service.”  When you are out, take time to thank our local heroes, nominated by their customers and/or employees.

World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from 1 to 7 August in more than 170 countries to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. It commemorates the Innocenti Declaration made by WHO and UNICEF policy-makers in August 1990 to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

http://worldbreastfeedingweek.org/

Each community chooses how to observe and celebrate World Breastfeeding Week.  One of the events in the Springfield area was hosted by the Springfield-Greene County Health Department WIC office:   The Big Latch On 2013.   This is an international event where breastfeeding mothers and babies gather for a simultaneous latch on at the designated time, trying to break the previous year’s record for participating moms and babies.  The program goals are: 

• Support for communities to identify and grow opportunities to provide ongoing breastfeeding support and promotion.

• Raise awareness of breastfeeding support and knowledge available in communities.

• Help communities positively support breastfeeding in public places.

•  Make breastfeeding a normal part of the day-to-day life at a local community level.

• Increase support for women who breastfeed - women are supported by there partners, family and the breastfeeding knowledge that is embedded in their communities.

• Communities have the resources to and / or advocate for coordinated appropriate and accessible breastfeeding support services.