Governor Hochul announces new law requiring employers to provide paid break time for employees to express breast milk

ALBANY, NY- Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that a new law requiring employers to provide 30-minutes of paid break time for employees to express breast milk goes into effect on Wednesday.

This mandate applies whenever employees have a reasonable need to express breast milk and extends up to three years following childbirth.

“As New York’s first mom Governor, I am fighting every day to give working parents the protections they need to keep their families strong and healthy,” Governor Hochul said.

“From our nation-leading prenatal leave program to this legislation requiring employers to give breastfeeding mothers much-needed break time, our state is continuing to stand up for parents in the workplace and protect maternal and child health.”

Under the new law, employees can also use existing paid break time or mealtime for any time in excess of thirty minutes.

This marks a significant shift from the previous requirement, where employers were only obligated to provide reasonable unpaid break time for this purpose.

Image via the office of New York Governor Kathy Hochul.