Policy Number: III-10
Last Reviewed: February 3, 2025
Responsible Dept.: Human Resources
Office to contact for clarifications: Human Resources
A signed copy of this policy is available in the President’s Office.
Purpose:
In accordance federal and state law, reasonable employee break times will be provided for up to one year after the child’s birth for the purpose of expressing milk.
Policy:
Seven workdays prior to your return-to-work from maternity leave, you must notify your supervisor of your intent to express milk while at work. This will ensure that a location to express milk or to breast feed will be readily available to you and that all of the details regarding your breaks are coordinated in advance.
For up to one year following the birth of a child, reasonable break times to lactate or breast feed must be approved as a paid break time provided the employee has received prior approval from their supervisor in accordance with their department’s procedures for requesting time away from work. These break times may not be accumulated or banked for use at another time. The break may run concurrently with any break time already provided to the employee, but an additional paid break may need to be scheduled outside of these times. Consideration must be given to the proximity of the lactation area as time to and from this area is not calculated as part of the break but shall be paid. The nursing mother must be completely relieved from duty or time spent pumping will count as hours worked and not towards the break. Employees may need to seek adjustments to their break times (duration and frequency) over the course of the covered period of time. Any adjustments should follow the procedures set forth herein, including documenting agreed upon adjustments.
Employees may request approval an adjusted work schedule as an accommodation. Your supervisor will work with you to provide a reasonable accommodation, including but not limited to an adjusted work schedule. If an adjusted work schedule is approved, the employee must complete the VWCC’s Work Schedule Form for submission to Human Resources.
Your supervisor will help you meet your needs for a clean, private, comfortable space with an electric outlet, a chair, and a small table or counter with a flat surface for the breast pump, and the required signage. A private location is a place with an electrical outlet and seating (other than a public restroom or toilet stall) that is shielded from view and is without intrusion by other employees or the public.
If an employee has access to a refrigerator, breast milk may be stored in the refrigerator. Any breast milk stored in the refrigerator must be in a closed container. Employees storing milk in the refrigerator will assume all responsibility for the safety of the milk and the risk of harm for any reason, including improper storage, refrigeration, and tampering.
If no refrigerator is available, nursing mothers should be prepared to carry a cooler and cold packs for personal storage of their expressed milk. Your supervisor will ensure that there is adequate space in your general work area to accommodate the cooler.
The college is not responsible for ensuring the safekeeping of expressed milk stored on college property or liable for the loss or damage of the employee’s personal equipment or the employee’s stored breast milk in a refrigerator or cooler.
Supervisors and participating employees must adhere to and abide by all established applicable policies and procedures.
Additional Information:
References
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
Providing Urgent Maternal Protections Act (PUMP)
Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872)
Code of Virginia Title 2.2
Virginia House Joint Resolution 145
DHRM Policy 1.25 Hours of Work
VCCS Policy 3.14.7.4
