Celebrating two years of the PUMP Act

When my mother was pregnant with me, she was a farmworker in South Carolina working the seasonal tobacco harvest. A few months after my birth, when she returned to work full-time, she no longer had access to a clean, private and accessible space to nurse or pump breast milk while at work. So, like thousands of other farmworker women, she had no choice but to stop nursing in order to return to work and earn an income for her family. At the time, there were no federal protections for nursing farmworker women and millions of other working mothers. 

On Dec. 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act (“PUMP” Act), expanding the right to pump at work to millions of previously excluded parents – including farmworkers. The PUMP Act expanded the critical protection of the right to pump at work, as needed, in a private, functional space to millions who were previously left unprotected by the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

As the Department of Labor celebrates the two-year anniversary of this expansion, it’s important to reflect on the significance of this milestone. Previously, employees exempt from overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act were also excluded from break time protections for nursing mothers – that’s roughly 1 out of every 4 working women of childbearing age. This left millions unprotected and forced to navigate the sensitivities of nursing, workplace dynamics and maternal heath alone. The PUMP Act was a crucial step in addressing these issues.

The PUMP Act was a historic step in helping bridge this gap in protection and the right to choose to express breast milk at work for some of our most vulnerable and essential workers, such as teachers, nurses, home care workers, and truck and taxi drivers. The law has been a major win in improving the economic conditions of nursing mothers. For previously exempt working mothers, having these protections was the difference between remaining in the workforce or choosing to nurse their infants. This is not a choice any new parent should be forced to make. 

In addition, data collected by the Center for WorkLife Law found that in recent breastfeeding discrimination cases filed in federal and state courts, 74% of cases included claims of economic harm. The PUMP Act also expanded the remedies available for such violations. Specifically, employers who violate the law can be subject to a range of legal remedies, including employment reinstatement, payment of lost wages, liquidated damages and punitive damages when appropriate. Employers also cannot retaliate or discriminate against employees for exercising their right to pump.

The PUMP Act has enhanced autonomy for millions of working mothers who can now choose to nurse and return to work. This is a historic stride towards economic justice and gender equality. As a new generation of women join the workforce, we are inheriting this essential protection that was fought for and won by the working women who came before us. The PUMP Act is a testament to the power and resilience of women in the workforce, exemplified by the millions of previously excluded women, like my mother, who continued to work and pave a path forward.

As the Department of Labor celebrates the PUMP Act’s second anniversary, we urge workers and employers to learn about the law’s protections for nursing employees. Free, confidential assistance is available by calling the department’s Wage and Hour Division at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). The division can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

Maria Espinoza is a policy advisor in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.