Right to breastfeed after returning to work for NSW public service women

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDMay 2 2010

Breastfeeding touted as the best way of feeding a newborn baby has been a difficult issue with working mothers. In a new development, new mums employed in the New South Wales public service have finally won the right to breast feed their babies while at work.

According to the new arrangement more than 116,000 women of childbearing age working in the public service will get one full hour in addition to meal breaks to breast feed their babes or express milk. For the provision a separate comfortable and private areas will be provided to breast feeding mums. For women who express milk facilities for refrigerating the milk will be provided along with the private and comfortable seating area.

According to Steve Turner from the Public Service Association this is a great idea that allows new mothers “to come back to work and breastfeed with dignity and respect.”

Maria Cirillo, a senior industrial officer with the Public Service Association also said that this will help new mothers to choose breast feeding even if they have to return to work. “In the past women have gone to their cars to express milk or gone to the toilet,” she said. Storing expressed milk has been a problem for new mothers too. Lack of privacy also had often necessitated stopping breast feeding in mothers in the past. She said, teachers and nurses will have to apply for similar benefits.

The Australian Breastfeeding Association's spokeswoman, Carey Wood private sector can also adopt these changes. This according to her will improve health in general for children. She emphasized, “We also know that babies who aren't breastfeeding their first twelve months of life are five times more likely to be hospitalized…This is a very important preventative health measure and we need the whole community to get behind women and support them continuing to breastfeed.”

This new arrangement was under a variation of the industrial award for NSW public servants and will take effect immediately and was a result of negotiations between the association and the Director of Public Employment, which oversees the employment of public servants.