Does your organization do enough to support working moms in the workplace? From protections for nursing employees to designing inclusive workplaces, there are many aspects that can make your workplace more welcoming for women at work.
A free meal, a generic email, and polite greetings are often the tools put to the task of recognizing Women’s Day in the office. While these provisions are certainly corporate-approved and acknowledge women and their presence in the workplace, they can feel hollow when these workers aren’t entirely supported at work. This is particularly true for new mothers, many of whom are already under great physical and mental pressure and continue to come into work to earn a living anyway. Aspects like postpartum workplace support aren’t often discussed due to the discomfort that is often felt surrounding such topics, but they are essential conversations that should be conducted.
Most employers wrap up their responsibility by providing parental leave and allowing their employees to return to work, however, the situation they return to isn’t always comfortable for them. The scope for supporting working moms in the workplace is vast and includes a range of considerations that often go unacknowledged, but building a workplace that cares for its workers ensures that they can care for your business with a clear head.
From offering a place to pump to ensuring that flexibility guides the way, there are many ways to support working moms in the workplace. (Image: Pexels)
On a Mission to Support Working Moms in the Workplace? Where Consideration Lives, Efficiency Will Follow
Is your organization equipped to follow the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act (PUMP Act) under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? Do you offer postpartum workplace support for caregivers who have just given birth to a new life? If the answers to these questions are no, you might have to make some changes to your operations at once. Starting a family is no easy tasks, and with employees bound to their 9-to-5 to ensure they can afford to add a new member to the family, matters grow far more complex. While aspects like maternity leave or parental leave are growing increasingly common, these considerations are only the bare minimum when it comes to supporting new parents.
Right from when employees decide to start a family, they have to begin exploring how to manage their leave for the birth, make changes to their lifestyle, start planning their expenses for the hospital bills, and the resources they need to invest in, all while mothers are combating physical and mental changes that continue to take a toll on them. Even after they return to the workplace, many of them have to ensure there is sufficient care available for their children and all their nutritional needs are met.
Aloof employers can choose to leave a majority of these concerns to the parents without getting involved in the details, but this gap in community building is why many organizations find their workforce sporting frayed, estranged relationships with the business and each other. Providing postpartum workplace support can feel highly complex, but starting with the smaller details can open up many doors for working towards the big ones.
Understanding the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act and Providing Support for Mothers
Not all support for working mothers has to stem from the legal provisions offered by the local laws, but there are some protections for nursing employees. The PUMP Act applies to all employers covered by the FLSA, and it requires employers to give workers time to take breaks as well as access a private space to express breast milk for a nursing child for up to one year after the child’s birth.
While employees may not be able to bring their child to work and feed them in the workplace, they can certainly use a place to pump at work to ensure they can feed their young ones later in the day. No, a bathroom or a storage closet does not work to serve this need, and neither should employees be relegated to using up their lunch break to take care of it. Under the Act, employers don’t have to create a permanent room for this purpose, but the basic consideration is to create a temporary space that is conveniently placed, “shielded from view, and free from any intrusion from co-workers and the public.”
Employers also cannot mandate employees provide a doctor’s note in order to take these breaks to pump. While some instances of undue hardship could offer employers some exceptions to this Act, they can often be better served by looking for ways to comply rather than a way out.
Having Access to a Place to Pump at Work Should Be Seen as an Employee Right
Offering a private, clean, well-ventilated place to pump at work is a basic consideration that should be met by all employers, and it should be met at once. It can be difficult for young parents to make such a request or bring it up themselves for fear of being seen as an inconvenience at work. Many will continue to suffer in silence rather than bring it up, but this adds additional pressure on them that they can do without. Women who are still breastfeeding need to pump every few hours, both for their own relief and for the later care of their child, and allowing them short breaks can free them up to return to work more comfortably.
“When I returned to work after my first baby two years ago, I was told to use a prayer room, a storage cupboard, an office with windows all around, and even the toilets. None of those options provide the privacy or dignity mothers need,” Laura Beales, Workplace Expert, co-founder and COO of Tally Workspace, told us recently. “For mothers who are breastfeeding or pumping, access to a private and hygienic space is essential. Yet in many workplaces these facilities simply don’t exist.”
Employers often put a considerable amount of effort into ensuring that there are sufficient desks, desktops, meeting rooms, break room equipment, and other conveniences at work that make employees more willing to comply with the return-to-work mandates that are growing in number today. Coworking spaces are also making a comeback, offering employers greater flexibility in determining how they want to arrange their workplace. Ensuring that a nursing or lactation room is part of the floor plan should always be an essential part of planning out the workplace in 2026.
Supporting Working Women Includes Building Inclusive Workplaces
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act and its consideration towards women’s rights regarding pumping at work is the first step towards legal compliance and support for working moms in the workplace, but it is only one part of a much bigger responsibility. Working women aren’t out to demand luxuries and benefits at work, but when workplaces are typically built around men, it also tilts the balance of the workplace toward them. Understanding how to support women at work requires an understanding of the physical challenges women face in operating in an office space that isn’t designed for them.
Menstrual leave is now getting more attention, allowing those who need time off to deal with their cycles for a day away from work. While this proposition remains controversial, employers are beginning to see how it might be better to have employees take time off from work when they don’t feel their best. Similar attention is also necessary towards women dealing with menopause. While they might be perfectly capable of performing their jobs, the process of dealing with hot flushes, breathing issues, urinary issues, PMS symptoms, and other complications can further strain them and drain them of their energy.
It may be difficult to address every symptom that new mothers or those with menopause might experience, but many aspects can be easily considered, such as:
- Temperature regulation at work
- Access to desk fans or cooler zones with good ventilation
- Flexible seating options and ergonomic solutions
- Regular breaks to help employees regulate themselves
- Increased access to bathrooms and hygiene products
- Dedicated wellness programs
- Workplace awareness campaigns
- Flexible work-from-home
- Healthy, nutritional meal options
- Relaxed dress codes tailored towards comfort
- Regular access to someone they can communicate with regarding other changes that may be helpful to them
Employers That Take Charge of Their Workplace Benefit in More Ways than One
Whether we talk about postpartum workplace support or support for women in general, these considerations are an essential part of addressing a pretty significant section of the workforce. Sure, employers can do without providing these conveniences, but they also miss out on retaining key talent as a result. The mass exodus of women from the workplace we witnessed last year is exceedingly worrying, and it doesn’t just affect the women but the workplace as a whole.
Without a significant chunk of the labor force, many organizations can expect to have a much harder time hiring and finding the right talent. They also lose out on the perspective offered by a big chunk of their own workforce, who also make up an equally big section of their customer base. Most families today function on the income of both parents, and with women leaving the workforce, the pressures on their male counterparts also grow.
Making improvements to the workplace can make it much easier for many to balance their careers and personal lives, enriching the business with insights and experiences of their own.
Learning How to Support Women In the Workplace Benefits the Entire Workforce
“Quiet areas, breakout spaces, and wellness rooms allow employees to reset or focus when needed. Inclusive design is ultimately about recognizing that people work differently,” Beales explained succinctly. “When employees feel comfortable and supported in their workspace, it improves wellbeing, productivity, and long-term engagement.”
As Beales effectively highlights, building inclusive workplaces isn’t just a mission to support working moms in the workplace but a way to recognize that every individual works differently. Flexibility in the workplace may be most cherished by working mothers, but those who have other caregiver duties, health complications, disability considerations, or merely a preference for flexibility also benefit from a workplace that is flexible and inclusive. Similarly, providing access to childcare facilities doesn’t just benefit mothers, but fathers, grandparents, or single caregivers as well.
“Inclusive workplace design isn’t about special treatment. It’s about recognizing that people have different needs and creating environments where everyone can work comfortably and perform at their best,” Laura states, and we agree. Inclusivity for one means inclusivity for all; the benefits multiply with every member of the workforce it manages to reach.
How does your organization support working moms or women in the workplace? Share your insights with us in the comments or write to us at anuradha.m@thehrdigest.com. Subscribe to The HR Digest for more insights into building a healthy and happy workforce that thrives and allows your organization to thrive with it.
