Yesterday a new law went into effect that encourages Oklahoma employers to provide unpaid break time for a working mother to pump her milk or breastfeed her child. The Tulsa World ran an article today that discusses reaction to the new law:
State Rep. Dale DePue, R-Edmond, wrote the bill that became Oklahoma’s law on breastfeeding and the workplace. He wanted to take on the issue but didn’t want to force employers to do anything they couldn’t afford or provide. “We’re trying to get employers thinking about this, but we just didn’t make it real tough,” he said. “Maybe it will have to come to that.”
The Oklahoma Health Department reports that just 10 percent of infants are exclusively fed breast milk. A significant reason for that is the number of women who return to work after having a baby and have difficulty getting the time and space needed to pump or nurse.
“Definitely it is harder for moms in lower-income jobs to get breaks, and that is a national challenge,” said Roseanne Smith, breastfeeding coordinator for the Women, Infants and Children program at the Oklahoma State Department of Health. “But we (and the state of Oklahoma) needed to start somewhere.”
Woosley, Leigh. “Law Helps Breastfeeding Moms.” Tulsa World. November 2, 2006.
[...] That is why the proposed legislation in Oregon is such a good idea and why we need more laws like the one recently passed in Oklahoma. Not only that but it would be nice to get guaranteed paid maternity leave. Leave around childbearing [...]