Workplaces going to be urged for private Breastfeeding areas

[HermyaAndThePomBears]

Here!

The government are going to give mothers the right to Brestfeed at work.

I don't know about anybody else, but I think this is great news.

[carocaro]

It's hard enough to go to the loo with your hangbag without the whole office thinking you are going to change your tampon, let alone express your milk.

[detachandtrustyourself]

Know what you mean ISNT. Fanfare for new things already happening.

Govt also anounced jobseekers will lose benefits if they don't show they are trying to look for work. Already happening. For very long time.

Caps on housing benefit. Already happening for years. (Local housing allowance I think it is called.) (Before that local rent officer decided case by case on private rentals)

People allowed to keep/apply for some benefits while in low paid work. Already happening. For very long time.

Must be other examples as well, which escaped my mind.

Wonder if they are doing it to distract from changes they are making that people won't like. (e.g. new universal credit, savings will count to take away help from those slightly better off claiming working and childcare tax credit.)

Also, anouncing breastfeeding 'new' but not new policies, like many other equality for women policies, gives the illusion women given every help to return to work quickly, continue to breastfeed for longer, so they have got equality and should be grateful and stop moaning.

[Hammy02]

This is utterly ridiculous. You're at work FFS. Also, are people completely unaware that we're in a recession and businesses have more important things to think about than accommodating your lifestyle choice. As someone else has already said, this will make women of childbearing age even less attractive to employers.

[Antidote]

I am totally supportive of this in theory, and would for it to be possible in practice.

However, I am frankly that anyone actually has a job that lets them take a break! I can literally count on the fingers of one hand the number of times in the past 8 years I have had a chance to eat lunch while not working, my morning list frequently overlaps the afternoon one and as I get more senior things have to wait till I am there.

So the very idea of taking 20 mins off to find my baby or the special room, feed or express and return to what I was doing is a complete joke. I can imagine bf during meetings, and while reporting, but not really feasible when doing scans or biopsies!

I guess better start filling the freezer now

[lollipopshoes]

My baby is due in June next year and the plan is that when I go back to work we'll get a CM near my work and the CM will bring the baby to me when he/she needs a feed.

Employers suggestion btw, not mine.

(and I'm 41 btw so waaaaaaay past the 20 - 30 age "limit" )

[UniversityOfMum]

lollipopshoes, you are very lucky to have such supportive employers.

Although this 'new' legislation may not be practical for most women, at least they are backing up their 'breast is best' campaign with some support for the mothers.

Will it actually work? Unlikely.

[detachandtrustyourself]

lollipop, congratulations! sorry to say, IME, you may find it difficult to get a childminder to bring baby in for a feed. They tend to have other children as well, to mind, take to activities etc., and would have to drag them along as well. But you have plenty of time to find one who is willing and able I suppose. Maybe a nearby nursery would be good, so you can go to feed your baby in your lunch hour? Or a nanny,(expect v expensive), or childminder who only looks after your baby?

[GetOrfMoiLand]

I think in purely practical terms this is unworkable. Frankly. yes it may well work in public sector but I cannot imagine in a month of Sundays that private businesses would encourage it.

And I think it would have a harmful effect on your career.

I went back to work FT when dd was 3 months old, and had to put her on formula. It took bloody ages to excpress a tiny amount of milk. I simply could not have done that at work, not would I have chosen to.

You simply cannot have everything. Either stay off work longer or feed formula.

[otchayaniye]

"accommodating your lifestyle choice"

It's not a lifestyle choice.

What do you think of my husband's employer, who allows him as a parent to have flexible working up to the age of six?

[dustythedolphin]

I think the idea is that CM will bring baby in for a feed, then take baby off again?

I've expressed at work for years (with three different babies)and have expressed in hotel rooms, conferences centres, external offices all over London and the Uk - just rang up and asked nicely beforehand and no one ever refused or couldn't accomodate me and my mini-pump .

I don't see why this should be any different. You just need a quiet room with a chair for a few moments to feed the LO.

I'm unclear why people are making such a hullabaloo about it TBH.

Smokers have fag breaks and had smoking rooms of years.

Most offices can accomodate a small room with a chair for a few minutes.

Its not a problem generally

[dustythedolphin]

Either stay off work longer or feed formula.

[WomanOfAbjectMystery]

Sorry but why must the mothers be shut away to feed?

[GetOrfMoiLand]

Perhaps breastpumps have imrpoved in recent years (or perhaps my breasts are crap) but it seriously took the best part of an hour to get about an inch worths of milk.

That is untenable at work.

can't see what is so about the choice to stay off longer or go on formula. It is a simple choice which needs to be made. How on earth can you be productive at work if you need to express for x hours a day?

[lollipopshoes]

WOAM - I don't think that's exactly what they're saying - I think that they are recognising that some women will want privacy to feed and that is what is talked about being provided.

It would surely be impractical to feed whilst trying to actually work though? (depends on job I s'pose, most people on here manage to MN and feed at the same time so p'raps could work on puter whilst feeding)

[chipmonkey]

carocaro do you think there is any shame in either changing a tampon or expressing milk?

I am quite sure when I go to the loo in work with my handbag that my colleagues might guess I have my period. So what? Most women get periods, it's not a secret!

Equally, they all knew the big briefcase-thing I brought in when the boys were little housed my breast-pump,containers and ice-packs. Avent did make the bag look sort of like a laptop bag but again, what if it is a pump? I don't mind my colleagues knowing I express and in fact I am sure that for at least one of my colleagues it made her realise she could do the same where previously she might not have considered it.

BaggedandTagged one thing that sprung to mind reading your post was that for a fair number of women, they change to formula early on in anticipation of going back to work. I remember when ds1 was newborn, my initial plan had been that I would feed him for 8 weeks, then gradually introduce formula to allow me to go back to work when he was four months old. I only decided not to wean to formula after I read in a book that you could express at work and continue to bf. At the time I had no "rights" to breaks for this but managed to express on my lunchbreak and in the end bfed ds1 for a year.

I do feel I had it easy though. The nature of my work means I will always have a private office and it is harder for women who can't demand this. Nice to have it enshrined in law.

[dustythedolphin]

"How on earth can you be productive at work if you need to express for x hours a day?"

Why would having a short break to express make anyone unproductive? I expressed in my lucnhbreak for a year with no hassle at all.

I find it strange that some posters are sso "anti" a measure designed to enable Mums to feed their baby in the most natural and healthy way available.

I accept that not all women can express easily, but why bugrudge women who might want to carry on BFing after they return to work?

[otchayaniye]

Because dustythedolphin:

1. Some women are unsettled by breastfeeding
   
2. They view breastfeeding beyond a year as perhaps a 'luxury' (haha, the luxury of feeding through the night because my baby didn't feed that much in the day-right) and that the precious moments mums should get a grip
   
3. They are jealous
   

Or a combination of the above.

[otchayaniye]

As it is, I also can express nothing and fed my 18-month old in my lunch hour.

If that wasn't convenient I'd have cut short my lunch hour and done it at another mutually convenient time.

Don't see how that flexibility on both employer and employee's part fosters antipathy towards women of child-bearing age.

[WomanOfAbjectMystery]

Lolli, you're right. I'm just cranky today. Yesterday someone suggested a BFing room at a group I attend. Trouble is, what I want is the support to BF in full view of others. Of course, the group is not a workplace, and I would certainly want a clean, reasonably comfortable room in which to pump, or feed my baby if I desired privacy. This shouldn't be difficult for most businesses to achieve.

[HermyaAndThePomBears]

Why is 'breastfeeding' deemed as a lifestyle choice?? It's not a 'lifestyle', you're feeding a child! Is the fact that you choose to feed yourself to survive a lifestyle choice?

I just don't get it, surely it is better for those that can and are able to breastfeed to be supported for as long as they're able to do so.

[BlueberryPancake]

Surely if the proposed changes are to encourage more women to BF, and for longer, the first thing to do would be to (like in Scotland) makes it an offence to stop nursing mothers from feeding their babies in public places. No?

I have tried to express at work and it was too complicated and I wasn't committed enough I suppose. Sterilising stuff every night, preparing your storage bags, carrying everything at work, taking the time to pump (really it's hard when you are not 'relaxed'), storing in the 'communal' fridge, having some ice packs for return journey home, taking everyhtin to nursery the next day, etc etc. Babies ended up having a bottle of formula at nursery and BF morning and night. I did express at work for many months but just to keep milk up and discarded the milk.

My employer said I could do it in one of the meeting rooms (they all had blinds so it was fine). They were fine with it but they would not have built a new 'room' for me!! It was a small office based company.

By the way, I did take my baby to work on at least five occasions, for company meetings, and did BF during the meetings. Nobody ever commented or looked at me funny. I just sat apart from everyone else and participated to the discussions anyway!

[peppapighastakenovermylife]

Seriously...this is going to affect so few women that I cannot see how it will impact on business.

What - perhaps an hour out of the day to do this? For what percentage of women? Most (I know not all) women go back at 6 months. Baby will be on solids. They will probably only need to express for 6 months. Perhaps two 30 minute slots. What proportion of employees is that actually going to cover?

At six months old so few babies are exclusively breastfed (I use this term as in not having any formula). Only a certain proportion of mothers work.

It really isnt going to cost that much. And I reckon you will get it back in reduced time off work / happier employee. Most will probably do it on a break anyway.

It is in society's interest for babies to be breastfed.

Personally if I am in work with a baby (on Kit day or for some other reason) I just feed at my desk whilst doing whatever else I am doing. I realise not everyone can do this.

[FortunateHamster]

Hammy02 - not sure that feeding a baby is a 'lifestyle choice' - it's pretty damn essential and while formula feeding is useful, it doesn't work for everyone. As I've already said, I don't know if I think that employers should have to do this, but it would be great if those that have the resources do.

[Hammy02]

You breastfed in meetings? My, how professional. No-one may have said anything to your face but I can guarantee you will not be taken seriously after that. Jeez.