Maine Employers: Breastfeeding Do's and Don'ts

A woman in California was fired for breastfeeding her baby – on her lunch break.

Her dismissal has led to a precedent-setting ruling by the state Fair Employment and Housing Commission in San Francisco. The decision, made public last week, said punishing a female employee for breastfeeding during a work break amounts to sex discrimination.

“Breastfeeding, on her own break time, is an activity intrinsic to Chavez’s sex, female, and also protected under California law,” the commission said.

The commission also said her former employer, Acosta Tacos, had discriminated against Chavez by not holding her previous job open for her during her pregnancy leave, forcing her to work at different locations each night as openings occurred. The commission ordered the company to pay her $21,645 for lost wages and $20,000 for emotional distress, and to pay a $5,000 fine to the state for a willful civil rights violation.

On September 12^th, 2009, Maine’s new breastfeeding in the workplace law will officially go into effect. The law states that an employer shall make reasonable efforts to provide a clean room or location, other than a bathroom, where an employee may express breast milk in privacy.

So, we can all learn from this California employer’s experience. Better yet, take it one step further – create a safe space for mothers who are breastfeeding.