New York is expanding accommodations and protections for nursing employees in the workplace. In accordance with amendments to New York Labor Law Section 206-c, which will go into effect in June 2023, employers across the state will soon be statutorily mandated to designate a room or other location for an employee to express breast milk. Employers must also provide an employee with break time (either unpaid or paid, if available) to express breast milk each time there is a reasonable need. While certain localities like New York City already mandate similar accommodations, these requirements – now mandated by statute rather than agency guidance – will be new to many employers. You must also keep in mind soon-to-be-enacted federal requirements expanding protections for nursing mothers. Here are the five things New York employers should know.
