You may already know that on June 11th, Representative Carolyn Maloney and Senator
Jeff Merkley introduced the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 (HR2819 / S1244).
What you might not have noticed is that this version of the bill has a new provision which would make life far easier for mothers who want to pump in the workplace.
This version requires employers with more than 50 employees to make reasonable efforts to provide a private space and unpaid break time for mothers to pump. This mirrors laws in a number of states, California and New York among them, that require employers to make some simple and cost effective accommodations for nursing moms.
In addition, the bill would protect breastfeeding mothers under the protection of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, set standards for breast pump manufacture, provide tax incentives for employers that establish private lactation areas in the workplace, and provide tax credits for nursing mothers.
To express your support for the bill, you can sign petitions sponsored by the U.S. Breastfeeding Committee or Moms Rising. There's also a Facebook group dedicated to promoting the legislation. And you can see a silly interview with Rep. Maloney and Stephen Colbert.
Thanks to Angela at Breastfeeding 1-2-3 for some of these links, and to Mama Seoul for the picture of a rally in support of this bill in 2007.
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