Parents continue to face challenges as they fight for support and protections in the workplace. The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act is set to help this population take a major step forward.
The bill, which garnered bipartisan support and has just been advanced to the Senate, will require all employers to provide time and a private, non-bathroom space for all lactating parents — employers with less than 50 employees may apply for an undue hardship exemption. While this requirement was previously sanctioned by the Fair Labor Standards Act in 2010, these protections only extended to those paid by the hour; this new bill will also apply to those given annual salaries, a group of nine million people that include airline employees, teachers and nurses.
