Parents
What The PUMP Act Changed For Nursing Employees
Federal law requires break time and a private space for expressing milk at work, and the amendment closed a coverage gap that excluded many workers.
Federal law addresses expressing milk at work through wage and hour legislation rather than through health or family leave law. That placement explains both the protections and their limits.
Where the requirement sits
The obligation was added to the federal wage and hour statute, meaning it is enforced by the labor department's wage division alongside minimum wage and overtime.
Employers must provide reasonable break time to express milk and a place to do so that is not a bathroom, shielded from view and free from intrusion.
Because the requirement sits in wage law, its original coverage followed that law's categories, which is where the gap appeared.
The gap the amendment closed
The initial provision applied only to employees covered by the statute's overtime requirements, which excluded workers exempt from overtime.
That left many salaried and professional employees, and certain other categories, without the protection despite being covered by the rest of the law.
The amending legislation extended coverage to those excluded groups, substantially widening the number of workers covered.
How the space requirement works
The space need not be permanently dedicated, but it must be available when needed and must meet the privacy conditions each time.
Temporary arrangements such as a screened area or a repurposed office can satisfy the requirement, which is how smaller workplaces comply.
Small employers may claim an undue hardship exemption, which is assessed against the employer's size, resources and structure rather than being a simple opt-out.
What the law says about pay
Break time is generally unpaid unless the employer already provides paid breaks, in which case an employee using one for this purpose is paid as for any other break.
Time must also be paid if the employee is not fully relieved of duties during it, which follows the general rule for work time.
Duration and frequency are described as reasonable rather than fixed, since needs vary by individual and change as a baby grows.
How state law layers on top
Many states have their own laws with broader coverage, longer periods of protection or explicit pay requirements, and the more protective provision applies.
Enforcement runs through the labor department, and the amendment added a defined process for raising a failure to provide space or time.
Employees uncertain what applies to their workplace can consult the labor department's published guidance and their state labor agency, which maintain current material.
