New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently signed a law that expands breastfeeding accommodations, bringing the standards for private employers in line with those for public employers in the state. The law, signed on December 9, 2022, requires private employers to “designate a room or other location” that is not a “restroom or toilet stall” for employees to “express breast milk.”

The law, S.4844-B/A.1236-A, requires the New York State Department of Labor to develop a model policy regarding workplace lactation rights and that employers adopt such a policy. Employers will be required provide the written policy to each employee upon hire, annually thereafter, and to employees returning to work following the birth of a child. The law prohibits employers from discharging, threatening, penalizing or discriminating against in “any other manner” employees who seek to exercise their rights under the law.

Employer lactation rooms or spaces must meet certain specifications. Specifically, the room must be:

1. “in close proximity to the work area”;
2. “well lit”;
3. “shielded from view”; and
4. “free from intrusion from other persons in the workplace or the public.”

Additionally, the room must be supplied with:

1. “a chair,”
2. “a working surface,”
3. “nearby access to clean running water,”
4. “an electrical outlet,” if the workplace has electricity, and
5. “refrigeration for the purposes of storing the expressed milk,” if there is access to refrigeration in the workplace.

If the lactation room provided by...

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