One of two laws recently passed by NY state expands the rights of nursing mothers in the workplace.
Effective June 19, 2024, NYS employers will now be required to provide 30 minutes of paid break time for employees to express milk for their nursing child, up to as many times per day that they need up to three years after birth.
Under the current law, NYS only requires employers to provide reasonable unpaid break time and a designated private room for employees to express milk for up to three years after giving birth.
Under federal law, employers must comply with these new breastfeeding rights at work in New York State. The new lactation break law in New York State will allow employees to take a paid lactation break of up to 30 minutes every time they express breast milk, in addition to other paid lunches or breaks.
Employees must give employers advance notice before returning to the workplace after leave if they need to express breast milk in the workplace. This will give employers and business owners time to adjust schedules if necessary to accommodate lactation breaks as well as make sure a designated lactation room is set up for the employee.
Employees should submit a request to their direct supervisor in writing, and employers must respond back to the employee in writing within five days of the request and communicate when a room has been designated for breast expression.
New York employers need to be aware of these updates to ensure compliance with these labor laws that aim to provide a supportive environment for nursing mothers. Employers should also clearly communicate these changes to their management staff.
Employers must update their lactation break policy to reflect these changes on the effective date. When it becomes available, the updated poster “Policy on the Rights of Employees to Express Breast Milk in the Workplace” on the Department of Labor's (DOL) website, describing the rights of employees, will also need to be posted in the workplace.
These new New York State lactation break laws must be carefully followed, with nursing employees given the necessary daily amounts of paid breaks of 30 minutes to express breast milk.
Currently, it is already required that employers provide a lactation room for employees to use when expressing breast milk. If businesses have more than one nursing employee, there doesn’t need to be a separate room per nursing employee; the lactation room can be used by all employees expressing breast milk.
But it can’t be just any room; the lactation room must be either a specific room or a designated location, and it must meet these requirements:
Keep in mind that these room requirements are already in effect for employers. So if your business has nursing employees and isn’t already compliant with this, you should immediately make the necessary changes to ensure your lactation room meets compliance. It’s important to note that businesses only need to have a dedicated lactation space if they have a nursing employee who has informed their employer in writing of their need to express breast milk in the workspace.
It’s essential that employers make the necessary changes to ensure compliance with the new NYS paid lactation break law and the upcoming NYS prenatal leave policy. Businesses will have to update their handbook to include the new paid prenatal leave policy and its legal effective date.
Organizations should also communicate with their managers about the new paid prenatal leave entitlement, paid lactation breaks, and double check to ensure they’re meeting
Contact Complete Payroll for assistance in updating your policies and educating your management team!