In plain words
The Fair Labor Standards Act is the main federal wage law in the United States. It sets the federal minimum wage and overtime pay, among other rules. Since 2010 it has required break time for many hourly workers to express milk. The federal , signed in 2022, extended this to most workers, including salaried workers who are exempt from overtime. The protection lasts for one year after a baby is born. California has its own wage and lactation laws, and they can offer more protection than the federal law. Each law is enforced by its own agency. A worker may have rights under both at the same time. The federal rule sets a floor, not a ceiling.
The deeper version
The FLSA (29 U.S.C. section 201 et seq.) was enacted in 1938 and is administered by the Wage and Hour Division. A 2010 amendment first required break time for nursing employees (section 7(r)). The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, signed in December 2022, expanded that provision, requiring reasonable break time and a non-bathroom space for an employee to express breast milk for one year after a child's birth. Coverage extends to exempt employees, a notable departure from the usual FLSA . Enforcement is by complaint, with remedies that include back pay and civil penalties. The reach of the provision for employers of different sizes and the details of its remedies are still being tested.
Where it comes up
- Lactation accommodation at work: your rights in CaliforniaCalifornia: Leave, Money, and Paperwork
- Returning to work and pumpingFeeding Your Baby
- Working while pregnantPregnancy: Mind and Life
- Going back to work: the feelings partPostpartum: Mind
What mothers here say about Fair Labor Standards Act
No one has posted under this term yet.
Sources
- US Congress — Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. section 201 et seq.
- US Congress — PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, 2022, expanding the FLSA break-time provision