From Basic to Best-In-Class: How to create workplace lactation facilities
As we move toward sharing space at work again, employers often ask us: how can we support our baby-feeding employees? The answer: employers who establish breastfeeding-supportive climates offer comprehensive plans that include policy, procedure, culture, access to experts, encouragement, community and facilities. In this piece, we’ll examine facilities and identify ways to elevate your family spaces to help remove barriers for working, baby-feeding parents.
Why do we need lactation facilities?
While the World Health Organization recommends that babies breastfeed until they are two years old, most mothers in the U.S. return to work only 10 weeks after giving birth (and 1 in 4 return a mere 2 weeks after giving birth). Employers are positioned to play a pivotal role in breastfeeding support, including the provision of safe, clean, private spaces for feeding parents to pump (i.e. express milk). For new parents who work, it’s a constant challenge to balance work and breastfeeding demands. When a baby needs to be fed, which happens about every 2 hours, employees must nurse or pump in order to maintain supply, prevent infection and provide milk for their babies while they are at work.
By investing in great lactation facilities at work, you're not only creating needed spaces for employees to express milk, but reducing turnover, sick leave, and medical claims for both baby and mom. All the while, you’ll be increasing retention and productivity as well as investing in your employer brand.
At pumpspotting, we made our start in helping breastfeeding parents find safe and comfortable places to nurse and pump. As a result, we’ve worked with designers and architects, industry leaders and real parents to understand what’s most needed and appreciated in a lactation space. To help you consider your best options, let’s categorize various amenities Basic, Better and Best.
Basic
At the very minimum, and as required by law, employers should plan to provide a private, clean space that is not a bathroom for parents who need to pump. This includes a chair, a table to place a pump on, an electrical outlet and a locking door. Disinfectant wipes should be available and the space should be in proximity to a sink and refrigerator. In this most basic setup, a space does not need to be a designated lactation room: it could be someone’s office, a clean closet, or an unused conference room. Privacy and cleanliness are the key elements to keep in mind.
download the free checklist
Wonder how your lactation rooms measure up? Want to be inspired to take your spaces to the next level? Download our free lactation facility checklist.
Better
To elevate the lactation space at your workplace, consider providing a hospital-grade breast pump so your workers don’t need to lug their cumbersome equipment back and forth. Send a powerful message about your commitment to support pumping parents when you display permanent signage to designate the space for its use: Lactation Lounge. Locate your lounge off the beaten path, so pumping feels private and away from non-lactating coworkers.
Level up when you provide the needed fixtures and appliances in your lounge. Your employees will appreciate storing their milk, sanitizing their parts, and washing their hands in the lounge rather than in nearby bathrooms and kitchens. Add shelves or cubbies for employees to store personal effects, a mirror to check presentability, and a message board to share family photos and messages of encouragement. If demand warrants a multi-user space, provide partitions for privacy.
Best in class
Want to not only empower women at work with family-friendly benefits but attract them to a workplace that helps them meet the demands of mothering a young one while killing it at work? Build a state-of-the-art facility by adding some of these features to your already solid lactation lounges:
Upgrade those swivel chairs to massaging chairs
Provide large pump station tabletops to accommodate all her items
Add USB ports and charge cords to each station, for her personal devices
Upgrade the mini-fridge to full-sized so there’s room for not just milk but also pump kits
Add secure lockers for longterm storage of pumps and personal items
For multi-user suites, add rooms for each pump station
Deepen connection by offering pumpspotting, so your team has 24/7 access to lactation consultants, community, and encouragement
Create an air of relaxation when you upgrade the lighting and provide creature comforts like lotions, snacks and drinks
Save the day when you provide a basket of replacement parts for pumps, disposable milk bags, and disposable nursing pads.
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It’s powerful to support your working parents. You can reduce turnover, sick leave, and medical claims. You’ll attract talent while increasing retention and productivity and investing in your employer brand.
To remove barriers for employees who are expecting or have babies, consider not only lactation facilities but also policy, procedure, access to a community of peers as well as expert advice from lactation consultants.
For a turnkey lactation support program, schedule a live demo today. 👇