Action Step 14: Employer Support

This is the final week of the US Breastfeeding Committee's 20 Actions in 20 Days Campaign. Today's action step is one that is a high priority for us at A Nurturing Moment - such a high priority, in fact, that we have an entire program designed to help employers in this area!

Today's step comes from pages 50-51 of the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Support  Breastfeeding.


Action 14. Ensure that employers establish and maintain  comprehensive, high-quality lactation support programs for their employees. 

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In the United States, a majority of mothers have returned to the workplace by the time their infants are six months old. Continuation of breastfeeding after returning to work is facilitated if the employer offers a lactation support program. The evidence demonstrates that supportive policies and programs at the workplace enable women to continue providing human milk for their infants for signfiicant periods after they return to work. High-quality lactation programs go beyond just providing time and space for breast milk expression, but also provide employees with breastfeeding education, access to lactation consultation, and equipment such as highgrade, electric breast pumps. Currently, only a quarter of U.S. employers provide breastfeeding employees with a place to express breast milk at the workplace.

Implementation Strategies 

Develop resources to help employers comply with federal law that requires employers to provide the time and a place for nursing mothers to express breast milk. As part of the Affordable Care Act enacted in 2010, the Fair Labor Standards Act was amended to require employers to provide reasonable break time and a private place for nursing mothers to express milk while at work. Programs are needed to educate employers about the new law, supply examples of how it can be implemented in a variety of work settings, and provide assistance to businesses that find compliance difficult.

Design and disseminate materials to educate employers about the beneits of providing 
more comprehensive, high-quality support for breastfeeding employees. The Health Resources and Services Administration resource kit, The Business Case for Breastfeeding: Steps for Creating a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite, is one model of how to promote employer support for breastfeeding employees. Developing Web sites, videos, conference exhibits, and peer-to­-peer marketing strategies could all be useful for expanding the use of lactation programs and implementing effective programs across a variety of work settings. New materials that focus on the unique concerns of non-office work environments and workplaces with few employees should be developed.

Develop and share innovative solutions to the obstacles to breastfeeding that women face when returning to work in non-office settings. While there are numerous examples of creating lactation rooms in office buildings and large stores, many work environments are more challenging for breastfeeding women returning to work. For example, farm workers may find it difficult to access a private place shielded from public view. Service workers who are on the road may not have a regular workplace where they can express milk. Challenges also exist in allowing break time for breast milk expression in businesses where there are few employees to cover during breaks. Many employers have already worked with workplace lactation consultants to develop innovative solutions, such as special trailers, makeshift temporary spaces, or “floater” employees, to enable nursing mothers to take breaks.


Promote comprehensive, high-quality lactation support programs as part of a basic 
employee beneits package. There are cost savings from better retention of experienced workers, higher employee morale, greater loyalty and productivity of employees, reduction in absenteeism and sick leave taken by parents of young children, and lower costs for health care and health insurance. While the percentage of employers having lactation support programs has increased over the past decade, many women still find it difficult to combine breastfeeding with work.

Getting Involved

If you've been around A Nurturing Moment very long, you probably know how committed we are to supporting working mothers. We often consult with moms who are returning to work to help them figure out how they will manage pumping and working. We've worked with mothers in a wide variety of industries and love to help them make continued breastfeeding a success.

Last year we began a special program designed specifically to help employers support their nursing employees - just like the last point of the Surgeon General's call suggests! ANM Workplace Solutions is available to any company in the Tennessee Valley who wants to offer exemplary support. We provide an on-site support group, hospital grade breast pumps, and in-home lactation consultation for employees! If your company isn't offering you this kind of support, then have your HR people get in touch with us! We'd love to help!

World Breastfeeding Week: Celebrating 20 Years of Breastfeeding Promotion

It has been 20 years since the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) launched the first World Breastfeeding Week campaign. The theme that first year was "Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative." So much has happened in these last 20 years! Let's look at how far we've come.

• The Innocenti Declaration from 1990 has continued to be a guiding force in breastfeeding promotion.
• In 1992 the Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition received a grant to move forward with the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) in the US. Wellstart International in San Diego, CA, developed the assessment tools.
• In 1997 the Healthy Children Project, Inc. accepted responsibility for the initiative and formed Baby-Friendly USA to implement the BFHI in the US.
• In 2002, The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF reaffirmed the Innocenti targets and added additional targets in the Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding.
• In December of 2011, Regional Medical Center in Anniston became the first Alabama facility to receive the Baby Friendly designation.
• As of May, 2012, 143 hospitals and birth centers in the United States have received this designation.

However, we still have a very long way to go! One of the goals of this year's World Breastfeeding Week is to call attention to the state of policy and programs related to the feeding of infants and young children.

The New York Initiative

Just yesterday there was a lengthy discussion on the WHNT facebook page about the Latch-On NY initiative which encouraging participating hospitals not to give free formula to women and to only distribute formula when medically necessary. A mother who chooses to formula feed will first learn about the benefits of breastfeeding her baby, at least while she's in the hospital. No mother will be denied formula, nor will any baby ever go hungry. The program is voluntary and simply helps hospitals take steps toward becoming Baby Friendly.  What the critics don't understand is that many hospitals are already doing this - there's been no fanfare or political upheaval about it; rather, they have simply implemented evidence-based medicine in their facilities.

Help for Working Moms

An argument that I have seen repeatedly in this discussion is the hardship that returning to work while breastfeeding imposes on women. The US Department of Health and Human Services office on Women's Health put together a promotion called The Business Case for Breastfeeding. It is very true that many women do indeed struggle. That is why it is so important for employers to recognize the important role they play in supporting their breastfeeding employees. Programs like ANM Workplace Solutions help employers provide the level of support necessary, and actually have a positive Return on Investment!

Truth in Advertising for Formula Companies

This week let's celebrate how far we've come, but let's recognize how far we still have to go! Let's help women and doctors alike understand that breastfeeding isn't just a matter of maternal choice. It is a decision that can affect their baby's health. It's time for our government to sign onto the International Code for the Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and stop allowing formula companies to mislead the public. 

No Guilt! Lots of Support!

Should mothers who don't breastfeed be made to feel guilty? No, I don't think this is about guilt. But every mother should have the opportunity to know just why breastmilk is so important for her baby. Furthermore, every mother should have the support necessary to breastfeed successfully.

Does "Breast is Best" Create a Hardship?

Photo of PumpEase courtesy of  http://www.snugabell.com/

I just came across an interesting article posted in the New York Times in which Jane Brody attempts to use a recent serial  interview study from Scotland to prove a point. She says the American Academy of Pediatrics goal that women exclusively breastfeed for about 6 months is unrealistic and imposes undue hardship on mothers. She relies somewhat on her personal experience 43 years ago when she had her twin sons early by C-section and pumped her milk as they were being fed formula in the hospital. Obviously that wasn't a terribly auspicious beginning for Ms. Brody, and she didn't have the advantage of a supportive lactation consultant since the profession didn't exist 43 years ago. Her OB was quite supportive, but her pediatrician was not, and I must say that I really admire her determination to breastfeed her sons despite some incredible obstacles and without a strong support network.

However, the thing that concerns me the most is the perception of a continued lack of support for nursing mothers in the workplace. Federal law mandates not only that breastfeeding mothers be given break time whenever they need to pump, but it also says that employers with 50+ employees are required to provide a place for pumping that is NOT a bathroom. Many employers have made huge strides in accommodating nursing mothers; nevertheless, some companies may still be unaware of the legal requirement to support these employees. It is vitally important that the women who work in these companies make their HR people aware of their responsibility.

A Nurturing Moment actually has a special program in place specifically designed to help employers offer the best support available to mothers. The return on investment is incredible. Cigna conducted a 2 year study of breastfeeding employees and found that their workplace lactation program produced the following results:

• $240 million annual savings in health care expenses
• 62% fewer prescriptions
• 77% reduction in absenteeism

Mutual of Omaha had the following results with their lactation program:

• 83% employee retention after maternity leave (national average is 59%)
• Healthcare claims per breastfed newborn averaged $1269 compared to $3415 for formula-fed infants.

That leads us into a discussion of my second major concern with Ms. Brody's article. She asserts that there is no research to back up the claims of the medical community that breastfed babies are healthier. It looks to me like Mutual of Omaha has done some research that backs that up!(Mutual of Omaha. (2001). Prenatal and lactation education reduces newborn health care costs.Omaha, NE: Mutual of Omaha.) Furthermore, the AAP statement is backed up by significant research. In fact, it contains 151 citations to support it's recommendations. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine has also responded to the Times article with a statement calling for enhanced support for all nursing mothers. 


This isn't about Mommy Wars or "Milk Wars." It's about a public health initiative. The worst thing that anybody can do is use guilt in an attempt to motivate a woman to nurse. Guilt is a lousy motivational tool. It is even more awful for anyone, breastfeeding advocate or not, to make a mother feel guilty about her feeding choice once that choice has been made. Life is just too short for guilt! 


So what do we need to do? First of all, we need to make sure that all mothers have access to good prenatal education about breastfeeding. They need to know that it may be challenging. They also need to know where to turn if they do have any problems.  Next, we need to realize that, as one mother so aptly put it, "It takes a village to breastfeed a baby." (thanks, Elizabeth!) That village includes health care providers, community support groups, family, friends, and breastfeeding professionals.  Finally, we all need to strive to make the workplace more supportive for nursing moms. Are you in management? Do you own a business? Do you know someone who does? Find out what they're doing to help their nursing mothers. Ask questions before you get pregnant. If your children are older, then see what you can do to smooth the way for younger women. If we all work together, we can help more moms succeed and avoid a lot of unnecessary guilt.

ANM Workplace Solutions

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Since our inception, A Nurturing Moment has helped working mothers navigate the frustrations of returning to work, pumping and continuing to breastfeed. We love it when moms who work outside the home tell us their breastfeeding success stories. Nothing thrills us more than to hear that one of our mamas has provided her baby breastmilk for a year or even longer.

Over the last few years, we've had moms ask us to provide information to their employers, and we've been happy to do that. However, we are ready to take it a step further now! ANM Workplace Solutions is an exciting new service that we are providing to companies in the Tennessee Valley!

We want to help area companies to be recognized by the Alabama Breastfeeding Commission as Breastfeeding Friendly Workplaces. We offer a variety of services tailored for each individual company we serve. We will help a company design a lactation room and provide them a hospital-grade pump to use in the room if they want one. However, we will also provide 24/7 phone consultation to their employees as well as to their spouses. Other options include in-home breastfeeding support, monthly support groups on-site for nursing mothers, and breastfeeding classes. Employees will also receive a 10% discount on everything they purchase at A Nurturing Moment.

The best part of all is that solid research shows that companies which offer a lactation support program benefit in many ways. They have a higher employee retention rate, enjoy greater employee satisfaction, and experience threefold savings in their health care costs. If you think your company would appreciate results like that, have your HR folks give us a call at 256-489-2590 to get more information. If you would prefer that we contact your business ourselves, leave a comment or give us a call!