Effective June 19, 2024, all employees in the State of New York have the right to paid break time to express breast milk. Specifically, N.Y. Labor Law § 206-c1 provides that “an employer shall provide paid break time for thirty minutes, and permit an employee to use existing paid break time or meal time in excess of thirty minutes to allow an employee to express breast milk for such employee’s nursing child each time such employee has reasonable need to express breast milk for up to three years following child birth.” Indeed, “[u]pon request of an employee who chooses to express breast milk in the workplace, an employer shall designate a room or other location which shall be a place that is (i) in close proximity to the work area; (ii) well lit; (iii) shielded from view; and (iv) free from intrusion from other persons in the workplace or public.” N.Y. Labor Law § 206-c2(a). “If the sole purpose or function of such room or other location is not dedicated for use by employees to express breast milk, such room or other location shall be made available to such an employee when needed and shall not be used for any other purpose or function while in use by such employee.” N.Y. Labor Law § 206-c2(b). This law applies to all public and private employers in the State of New York, regardless of size.
The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) requires employers to notify their employees about their rights to express breast milk in the workplace and has published a policy, entitled Policy on the Rights of Employees to Express Breast Milk in the Workplace, to be distributed to employees when they commence employment and annually thereafter. Among other things, the policy advises employees (i) about their rights to thirty-minutes of paid break time to express breast milk, (ii) that an employer is prohibited from requiring an employee to work before or after their normal shift to make up for any time used as paid break time to express breast milk, (iii) that employees who work remotely have the same rights to paid time off for the purpose of expressing breast milk as in-person employees, (iv) how to make a request to express break milk in the workplace, (v) the specific lactation room requirements, and (vi) about NYSDOL and federal resources if the employee believes that they are experiencing retaliation for expressing breast milk in the workplace or that the employer is in violation of the policy.
Based on the foregoing, we recommend that employers develop lactation break policies to comply with this law and/or review their current lactation break policies and update them accordingly to comply with this law.
