Lawyers..Help with BF at work question

My sister has a meeting with her boss and HR tomorrow regarding her return to work and BFing. They are out to give her a hard time. In a managerial position they have never had anyone in the office BF. She is so upset. She has really thought out her leave in order to help her job out and the trade show she runs. She was willing to come back to work after 4 weeks to help and hen work some days/hours drom home. They are turning her BF into an issue. Any help is GREATLY appreciated.

Re: Lawyers..Help with BF at work question

This is outrageous!! Why don't you also post this on Parenting. I know there are a few lawyer moms there, they might be able to advise!

Re: Lawyers..Help with BF at work question

I'm a lawyer, but unfortunately I have no experience with this. My gut tells me though that they can't do anything about it. As long as see does it on breaks etc, they will have to allow it. Hope you can get more help from the moms.

I just looked up La Leche take a look here:Link

Message edited 6/12/2007 8:37:42 PM.

Re: Lawyers..Help with BF at work question

I'm a lawyer. There are HR people who know a lot more about this than I do--maybe post your question addressed to them.

Re: Lawyers..Help with BF at work question

Legally they are not required to accomodate her pumping if she's in NY.

However if she wanted to push the issue, she could state that it is her right to pump due to a medical condition. They may not buy it but, it could be a workaround. If her ob/gyn wrote an RX requiring her to pump, they would probably accomodate her. Technically lactaction is not considered a disability but they would have to look into it & would need to tread very lightly.

Also if she had an RX that required her breaks every 4 hours, under HIPPA she would not have to tell them what the breaks were for.

All that being said, her employers are azzes & I would probably be the one to push the issue unless hormones got the best of me first.

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Rep. Mahoney (D-NY) introduced a bill in 1999 (see below)

This year’s version would not amend the FMLA, but would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include breastfeeding (including expression of milk by a lactating woman) within the definitions of “because of sex” or “on the basis of sex”.


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Oregan passed a new law that requires covered employers to provide the breaks unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the business. “Undue hardship” is defined as “significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature or structure of the employer's business.”

An employee, coming back to work after maternity leave, is obligated to provide reasonable notice to the employer that she intends to express milk on her return. If possible, employees should take the rest periods to express milk at the same time as rest periods that are otherwise provided to them.

Unless otherwise agreed to by the employer and the employee, the employer must provide the employee a 30-minute rest period to express milk during each four-hour work period.

Under the new law, employers also must make “reasonable efforts” to provide a room or location, other than a public restroom or toilet stall, in close proximity to the employee’s work area for the employee to express milk in private. “'Reasonable efforts” means efforts that do not impose an undue hardship on the operation of the business.

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