June Brings New Lactation Accommodation Requirements to New York State

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Patricia Tsipras

June 12, 2023

Effective June 7, 2023, New York State amended the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act to require private employers to comply with new time, space, and notice requirements for accommodating employees who wish to express breast milk at work.

Since 2007, New York State has required that employers (1) provide reasonable unpaid break time or allow employees to use paid rest or meal breaks; (2) for at least 20 minutes at a time; (3) at least once every three hours, to express breast milk during their workday (4) in a private location in close proximity to the employees’ work area; (5) for up to three years following the birth of their child.

The amendments to the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act now also:

• require that an employee be permitted to take breaks “each time such employee has reasonable need to express breast milk”
• require a location to express breast milk that
  • is shielded from view
  • is free from intrusion
  • is not a restroom
  • includes sufficient lighting, a chair, a working surface, nearby access to clean running water, an electrical outlet, and access to refrigeration to store pumped milk
• require that employers implement a lactation accommodation policy
  • to be distributed annually to all employees, to each employee upon hire, and to employees returning to work following childbirth
  • informing employees of their rights under the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act
  • setting forth the procedure for requesting a lactation accommodation, including a requirement that the employer respond to an accommodation request within five business days
• prohibit retaliation against employees who exercise their rights under the statute

Employer Takeaways
Employers in New York State should review the New York State Department of Labor’s model policy and ensure that their own policies and practices are in compliance.  Employers in New York City should be familiar with the requirements of the New York State amendments, as the same requirements became effective in New York City in 2019.  New York City employers, however, will now also be subject to the notice requirements of New York State’s law.

The author of this article, Patricia Tsipras, is a member of the Bar of Pennsylvania. This article is designed to provide one perspective regarding recent legal developments, and is not intended to serve as legal advice in New York or Pennsylvania, or any other jurisdiction, nor does it establish an attorney-client relationship with any reader of the article where one does not exist. Always consult an attorney with specific legal issues.