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32 Breastfeeding Moms on What Works at Work. Emily Waldron Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health University of Arizona. Background.
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32 Breastfeeding Moms on What Works at Work Emily Waldron Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health University of Arizona
Background • Affordable Care Act amended section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act to require employers to provide “reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for 1 year after the child’s birth each time such employee has need to express the milk.” • Employers are also required to provide “a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.”
Arizona Specific Breastfeeding Policy • Healthy Arizona Policy Initiative (HAPI) • Promote breastfeeding as a component of worksite wellness • Strategy 7 of CDC Grant 1305 • Provides resources for ADHS to ensure workplaces are complying with the federal lactation accommodation law (Section 4207 of the Affordable Care Act)
Internship Goal Develop a workplace lactation guide designed for county health departments to distribute to local employers to assist with breastfeeding promotion at the workplace.
Objective One • Perform a literature review to inform policy development recommendations and interview protocol • “The Business Case for Breastfeeding” by the United States Department of Health and Human Services • Texas Mother Friendly Worksite Initiative • Texas Department State Health Services • CDC Grant Communities Putting Prevention to Work-State and Territory Initiative-Special High Impact Initiative • Businesses can apply to be designated as mother-friendly
Objective Two • Develop interview questions, recruit interview participants, and conduct and analyze interviews with 30 women who are currently lactating or have lactated in the past two years • Interview questions developed from HRSA’s The Business Case for Breastfeeding • Recruitment Strategy • Designed a recruitment flyer and distributed the flyer to 10 daycares and preschools in Tucson, Arizona and to lactation consultants at University of Arizona’s Medical Center • Social Media: “Badass Breastfeeding Tucson Moms” Facebook group
Objective Two Continued • Interview Methods • Conducted 30 interviews by phone, 2 in-person • 29 interviews conducted with participants living in Tucson; 3 participants lived in Phoenix • Answers recorded during the interview and coded immediately following the interview
Objective Three • Create a handout on the benefits of breastfeeding for ADHS to distribute to Arizona businesses • Return on Investment • Employee Perspective • Qualitative Data • How to Invest in Breastfeeding at Work (based on interview results)
Interviewee Workplace
ResultsOverview • 32 interviews conducted between June-August 2014 • Average Age: 32.7 • Average months spent pumping at work: 10.06 • 47% of workplaces had a designated lactation space; 53% did not • 78% of interviewees used a public-shared refrigerator to store breast milk at work (scale of 1-4) 2.8 rating • Support from colleagues (scale of 1-4): 3.34 • Support from supervisor (scale of 1-4): 3.32
Key Findings • Three Key Findings • Employee Lactation Breaks • Employee Lactation Rooms • Workplace Lactation Education
Employee Lactation Breaks • Positive • “No questions asked” • “Took as long as I needed” • “Trust” • Negative • “ The only option to pump was in a male supervisor’s office. I had to kick my supervisor out of his office every time I pumped” • “Meeting with clients” • “My lunch break was only 20 minutes long which was not enough time”
Employee Lactation Rooms • Positive • “Comfortable chairs” • “Sink in the lactation rooms” • “Refrigerator for breast milk located in lactation room” • “Quiet” • Negative • “Wanted to put us in a bathroom. I had to explain the law to my employer” • “The curtains on the lactation room were sheer. Co-workers could see” • “Pumped in the car at off-site meetings” • “I pumped in the greenroom at school where plants were being grown. Finally demanded a different pumping location when mushrooms began to grow”
Workplace Lactation Education • Positive • “Online workplace community for new mothers” • “Respectfulness from co-workers. Nobody has ever said anything” • “Provided with a ‘back to work’ packet after returning from maternity leave with lactation room locations listed and a ‘know your rights’ insert” • Negative • “Supervisor said he would not have hired me if he knew I was pregnant.” • “Colleagues suggested going to the car to pump” • “My boss asked me if I had a battery pack for my pump so I could use the bathroom to pump”
Next Steps • Definition of “reasonable time” of the Fair Labor Standards Act • A venue for employees to anonymously file workplace lactation complaints • Enforcement of Affordable Care Act policies at the workplace • Positive recognition for workplaces going above and beyond the basic lactation requirements • Standardized lactation education for co-workers and employers