Breastpump at work? Most parents who use them report unpleasant workplace encounters
The breastpump may help parents feel empowered to return to work, but many who do so run into workplace difficulties, according to a new study.
The study, conducted by Wakefield Research and commissioned by breastpump supplier Byram Healthcare Centers, surveyed 1,000 working parents who breastfeed children 2 and younger.
California law provides expansive protections for breastfeeding parents, including the requirement that employers maintain a private lactation room that also has access to running water and a refrigerator. There are also national laws in place.
Yet fewer than a fifth, 18 percent, of working breastfeeding parents said they are aware of the laws protecting them in the workplace,
More than half of respondents, 53 percent, said they had their hours cut or workload altered as a result of being new parents. And 66 percent reported unpleasant interactions with co-workers resulting from their breastpumping.
However, for many, the breastpump represented a way to return to the workforce.
Most working parents, 95 percent, reported using a breastpump, with more than half, 63 percent, saying that doing so enabled them to return to work. A third, 36 percent, said pumping gave them a chance to advance their career.
“The survey also revealed that taking pumping breaks does not mean pumping the brakes at work,” with 96 percent of parents saying they work while pumping breastmilk, according to a statement on the study.
This story was originally published July 31, 2019 at 11:40 AM with the headline "Breastpump at work? Most parents who use them report unpleasant workplace encounters."
