By: Faatimah Jafiq and Ty Hyderally

At a glance

For most employers[1], the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mother Act (“PUMP Act”) went into effect in April 2023. On June 19, 2024, a paid 30-minute lactation break with extra protections will go into effect for employees in New York state. Additionally, New York will become the first state to separate prenatal care and paid sick leave in a law that goes into effect on January 1, 2025.

Getting Paid to Pump

New York employers[2] must give a paid 30-minute lactation break to employees “each time such employee has a reasonable need to express breast milk.” Labor Law § 206-c(1). This is consistent with the federal laws set forth by the Break Time for Nursing Mothers Act (“BTNM”) under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In New York, if the employee requires more than 30 minutes to express breast milk, the excess time will be deducted from their existing paid break time or mealtime.

The FLSA grants an employee the right to express breast milk for a nursing child for up to one year after the child’s birth. However, the Nursing Mothers in the Workplace Act (New York State Labor Law Section 206-c) provides for up to three years following childbirth. This allows nursing employees to pump at work while still getting paid for up to three years after giving birth. This Act also states that “[n]o employer shall discriminate in any way against an employee who chooses to express breast milk in the workplace.” If your employer tells you that you cannot pump breast milk at work, that you will not be paid for the 30-minute breaks you use to pump, or that you must use the bathroom or a toilet stall to express breast milk – they may be in violation of the Act.

Looking Ahead

Effective January 1, 2025, Labor Law § 196-b (4-a) will require New York employers to provide their employees with 20 hours of paid prenatal leave in the span of any 52-calendar period. Typically, prenatal leave was covered under regular New York Sick and Safety Leave; however, the new laws state that paid prenatal leave can be used for similar health services. This includes services ordinarily received by an employee during or relating to pregnancy, for example: physical examinations, medical procedures, testing and monitoring, and meetings with health care professionals that are pregnancy related. Labor Law §196-b (4-a). Employees are eligible for paid prenatal leave as soon as they are hired, as the amendment does not set forth an eligibility period. However, upon termination or resignation, employers are not required to pay the employee for any unused prenatal leave.

What This Means for You

Starting June 19, 2024, New York employees will have guaranteed paid 30-minute lactation breaks. In the next six months, New York employees who are pregnant, trying to become pregnant, or actively breastfeeding can be paid for the time spent laboring in those endeavors in a law that goes into effect on January 1, 2025.

If a New York City employee believes there to be a violation of the New York City Earned Safe and Sick Time Act, they can file a lawsuit to enforce their claims. Doing so could result in remedies that include compensatory damages, injunctive and declaratory relief, as well as attorneys’ fees and costs, in addition to being able to file an administrative complaint with the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.

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[1] Employers with fewer than 50 employees could seek an exemption from the PUMP Act “if compliance would require an undue hardship.” Enforcement of Protections for Employees to Pump Breast Milk at Work, U.S. Dep’t of Lab.: Wage and Hour Div. (Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2023-02), May 17, 2023, at 5.

[2] The term “employer” here includes any person, corporation, limited liability company, or association employing any individual in any occupation, industry, trade, business or service, but does not include governmental agencies. Labor Law § 190(3)