It's natural, healthy -- and it's law (San Francisco Chronicle)

How would you feel if your child's lunch or dinner was prepared in a bathroom?

That's exactly how some working new mothers feel when they are directed to the nearest bathroom whenever they have to pump milk from their breasts to prepare their newborn's next meal.

Over the years, breast-feeding has gained such popularity that lawmakers are increasingly recognizing a mother's right -- in essence her need -- to express milk wherever and whenever she needs to do it.

In California, a law adopted two years ago requires employers to provide a space -- other than a bathroom -- where nursing mothers can pump milk in privacy, though such areas are the exception rather than the rule, advocates said. Employers also must provide employees with break time to accomplish the task.

Too often, the law is violated, though more often out of ignorance than contempt.



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