New York City Lactation Room Laws Go Into Effect

On March 18, 2019, new laws went into effect in New York City requiring lactation rooms in certain City spaces, requiring employers to provide lactation rooms, and requiring employers to implement a lactation room accommodation policy.

Employers in New York City must now provide a lactation room that is within a reasonable proximity to employees’ work areas, including a refrigerator suitable for breast milk storage, an electrical outlet in the lactation room, and access to nearby running water.

Employers must also have a written policy regarding lactation. Such policies must provide details about the lactation room and provide the procedure for requesting an accommodation relating to lactation.

The policy on accommodations must:

1. Specify the means by which an employee may submit a request for a lactation room;
2. Require the employer to respond to a request for a lactation room within a reasonable amount of time not to exceed five business days;
3. Provide a procedure to follow when two or more individuals need to use the lactation room at the same time, including contact information for any follow up required;
4. State that the employer shall provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk, consistent with section 206-c of the Labor Law; and
5. State that if the request for a lactation room poses an undue hardship on the employer, the employer shall engage in a cooperative dialogue.

These new laws do not alter the existing right to breastfeed in public pursuant to Article 7 of the Civil Rights Law.