This guide compiles the above resources in an easy to understand format to ensure lactating workers have the information they need to make working and breastfeeding a success. It was designed to help employees understand their rights in the workplace and serve as a break time resource for families and employers with questions about the law.
For more information about the passage of the PUMP Act and what this historical bill means for lactating workers, visit the PUMP Act Explained webpage.
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed the Fiscal Year 2023 Omnibus Spending Bill into law. The bill includes the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, which extends to more employees who are nursing mothers the right to receive break time to pump and a private place to pump at work and makes other adjustments. More details about the changes in the law are forthcoming. Read the press release.
Effective March 23, 2010, this federal law requires employers to provide break time and a place for most hourly wage-earning and some salaried employees (nonexempt workers) to express breast milk at work. The law states that employers must provide a "reasonable" amount of time and that they must provide a private space other than a bathroom. They are required to provide this until the employee's baby turns one year old.
This provision was passed as Section 4207 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which amended Section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207) by adding at the end the following:
(3) An employer that employs less than 50 employees shall not be subject to the requirements of this subsection, if such requirements would impose an undue hardship by causing the employer significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature, or structure of the employer’s business.
(4) Nothing in this subsection shall preempt a State law that provides greater protections to employees than the protections provided for under this subsection.
This guide compiles the above resources in an easy to understand format to ensure lactating workers have the information they need to make working and breastfeeding a success. It was designed to help employees understand their rights in the workplace and serve as a break time resource for families and employers with questions about the law.
The Break Time for Nursing Mothers law does not require pumping breaks to be paid. However, if your employer already offers paid breaks and you use those breaks to pump your milk, your time should be paid in the usual way . If you need extra time beyond what is usually allowed for these paid breaks, then the additional time does not need to be paid and your employer might ask you to "punch out" for the additional time.
For example, if your employer normally allows employees to take a 15 minute break, but you need 25 minutes to pump your milk, then 15 minutes should be paid and the other 10 minutes can be unpaid.
If you continue to work during your pumping breaks , you should be paid in the usual way.
The Break Time for Nursing Mothers law applies to nonexempt employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) .
The FLSA establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor standards affecting full-time and part-time workers in the private sector and in federal, state, and local governments. The FLSA contains some exemptions from these basic standards. Some apply to specific types of businesses; others apply to specific kinds of work. Employers with fewer than 50 employees are not subject to the FLSA break time requirement if compliance with the provision would impose an under hardship.
If you are covered by the FLSA and eligible for overtime pay, you may have the right to break time and a private space to express milk for your baby while you are at work . Even if you are not covered by the federal law, you may be covered by a state law .
For help determining whether you are covered, call the Wage and Hour Division at 1-866-487-9243, try the Fair Labor Standards Act Advisor , or use the information below:
Break Time for Nursing Mothers law: Is your work covered by the FLSA?
The Break Time for Nursing Mothers law only covers employees who are covered by the FLSA. In order to be covered by the FLSA, your job must qualify under either "enterprise coverage" or "individual coverage," as explained below.
The Break Time for Nursing Mothers law is included in section 7 of the FLSA, which deals with overtime pay requirements. Only employees who are not exempt from section 7 are entitled to breaks to express milk under the FLSA.
If your employer is required to pay you overtime (one and a half times your usual pay rate) when you work more than 40 hours per week, then you are considered a nonexempt employee. Even if you only work part-time or have never actually received overtime pay, you may still be considered a nonexempt employee.
While employers are not required under the FLSA to provide breaks to lactating workers who are exempt from overtime pay requirements of section 7, they may be obligated to provide such breaks under state laws.
If you are not covered by the federal "Break Time for Nursing Mothers" law, or if your work is covered under the FLSA but you are exempt from overtime, visit the U.S. Department of Labor Women's Bureau online map of employment protections for women who are pregnant or nursing for a state-by-state listing or contact your state breastfeeding coalition to find out if you are covered by a state law. For information on other state breastfeeding laws, see the directory from the National Conference of State Legislatures.
