State Laws
1030. Every employer, including the state and any political subdivision, shall provide a reasonable amount of break time to accommodate an employee desiring to express breast milk for the employee's infant child. The break time shall, if possible, run concurrently with any break time already provided to the employee. Break time for an employee that does not run concurrently with the rest time authorized for the employee by the applicable wage order of the Industrial Welfare Commission shall be unpaid.
(a) An employer shall make reasonable efforts to provide an employee with the use of a room or other location, other than a bathroom, in close proximity to the employeeās work area, for the employee to express milk in private. The room or location may include the place where the employee normally works if it otherwise meets the requirements of this section.
(b) An employer who makes a temporary lactation location available to an employee shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The employer is unable to provide a permanent lactation location because of operational, financial, or space limitations.
(2) The temporary lactation location is private and free from intrusion while an employee expresses milk.
(3) The temporary lactation location is used only for lactation purposes while an employee expresses milk.
(4) The temporary lactation location otherwise meets the requirements of state law concerning lactation accommodation.
(c) An agricultural employer, as defined in Section 1140.4, shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section if the agricultural employer provides an employee wanting to express milk with a private, enclosed, and shaded space, including, but not limited to, an air-conditioned cab of a truck or tractor.
(d) If an employer can demonstrate to the department that the requirement to provide the employee with the use of a room or other location, other than a bathroom would impose an undue hardship when considered in relation to the size, nature, or structure of the employerās business, an employer shall make reasonable efforts to provide an employee with the use of a room or other location, other than a toilet stall, in close proximity to the employeeās work area, for the employee to express milk in private.
1032. An employer is not required to provide break time under this chapter if to do so would seriously disrupt the operations of the employer.
1033.
(a) The denial of reasonable break time or adequate space to express milk in accordance with this chapter shall be deemed a failure to comply for purposes of Section 226.7. An aggrieved employee may file a complaint under this subdivision with the Labor Commissioner pursuant to Section 98.
(b) An employer shall not discharge, or in any other manner discriminate or retaliate against, an employee for exercising or attempting to exercise any right protected under this chapter. This subdivision is not intended to limit or expand an employeeās rights pursuant to Section 98.6. An aggrieved employee may file a complaint under this subdivision with the Labor Commissioner pursuant to Section 98.7.
(c) An employee may report a violation of this chapter to the Labor Commissionerās field enforcement unit. If, upon inspection or investigation, the Labor Commissioner determines that a violation of this chapter has occurred, the Labor Commissioner may issue a citation and may impose a civil penalty in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) for each day that an employee is denied reasonable break time or adequate space to express milk in violation of this chapter. The procedures for issuing, contesting, and enforcing judgments for citations or civil penalties issued by the Labor Commissioner for violations of this chapter shall be the same as those set forth in Section 1197.1.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, violations of this chapter shall not be misdemeanors under this code.
1034.
(a) An employer shall develop and implement a policy regarding lactation accommodation that includes the following:
(1) A statement about an employeeās right to request lactation accommodation.
(2) The process by which the employee makes the request described in paragraph (1).
(3) An employerās obligation to respond to the request described in paragraph (1) as outlined in subdivision (d).
(4) A statement about an employeeās right to file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner for any violation of a right under this chapter.
(b) The employer shall include the policy described in subdivision (a) in an employee handbook or set of policies that the employer makes available to employees.
(c) The employer shall distribute the policy described in subdivision (a) to new employees upon hiring and when an employee makes an inquiry about or requests parental leave.
(d) If an employer cannot provide break time or a location that complies with the policy described in subdivision (a), the employer shall provide a written response to the employee.
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4002.5. (a) On or before January 1, 2020, the sheriff of each county or the administrator of each county jail shall develop and implement an infant and toddler breast milk feeding policy for lactating inmates detained in or sentenced to a county jail. The policy shall be based on currently accepted best practices. The policy shall include all of the following provisions:
(1) Procedures for providing medically appropriate support and care related to the cessation of lactation or weaning.
(2) Procedures providing for human milk expression, disposal, and same-day storage for later retrieval and delivery to an infant or toddler by an approved person, at the option of the lactating inmate and with the approval of the facility administrator.
(3) Procedures for conditioning an inmate's participation in the program upon the inmate undergoing drug screening.
(b) The infant and toddler breast milk feeding policy for lactating inmates shall be posted in all locations in the jail where medical care is provided and the provisions of the policy shall be communicated to all staff persons who interact with or oversee pregnant or lactating inmates.
(c) This section applies without regard to whether the jail is operated pursuant to a contract with a private contractor and without regard to whether the inmate has been charged with or convicted of a crime.
(Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 944, Sec. 1. (AB 2507) Effective January 1, 2019.)
(a) A school operated by a school district or a county office of education, the California School for the Deaf, the California School for the Blind, and a charter school shall provide reasonable accommodations to a lactating pupil on a school campus to express breast milk, breast-feed an infant child, or address other needs related to breast-feeding. Reasonable accommodations under this section include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Access to a private and secure room, other than a restroom, to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child.
(2) Permission to bring onto a school campus a breast pump and any other equipment used to express breast milk.
(3) Access to a power source for a breast pump or any other equipment used to express breast milk.
(4) Access to a place to store expressed breast milk safely.
(b) A lactating pupil on a school campus shall be provided a reasonable amount of time to accommodate her need to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child.
(c) A school specified in subdivision (a) shall provide the reasonable accommodations specified in subdivisions (a) and (b) only if there is at least one lactating pupil on the school campus.
(d) A school subject to this section may use an existing facility to meet the requirements specified in subdivision (a).
(e) A pupil shall not incur an academic penalty as a result of her use, during the schoolday, of the reasonable accommodations specified in this section, and shall be provided the opportunity to make up any work missed due to such use.
(f) (1) A complaint of noncompliance with the requirements of this section may be filed with the local educational agency under the Uniform Complaint Procedures set forth in Chapter 5.1 (commencing with Section 4600) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations.
(2) A local educational agency shall respond to a complaint filed pursuant to paragraph (1) in accordance with Chapter 5.1 (commencing with Section 4600) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations.
(3) A complainant not satisfied with the decision of a local educational agency may appeal the decision to the department pursuant to Chapter 5.1 (commencing with Section 4600) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and shall receive a written decision regarding the appeal within 60 days of the department's receipt of the appeal.
(4) If a local educational agency finds merit in a complaint, or if the Superintendent finds merit in an appeal, the local educational agency shall provide a remedy to the affected pupil.
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(a) The California Community Colleges and the California State University shall, and a satellite campus of these systems and the University of California are encouraged to, provide reasonable accommodations on their respective campuses for a lactating student to express breast milk, breast-feed an infant child, or address other needs related to breast-feeding. Reasonable accommodations under this section include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Access to a private and secure room, other than a restroom, to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child. The room shall have a comfortable place to sit and have a table or shelf to placeequipment described in paragraph (3).
(2) Permission to bring onto a college or university campus a breast pump and any other equipment used to express breast milk
(3) Access to a power source for a breast pump or any other equipment used to express breast milk.
(b) Lactating students on a college or university campus shall be provided a reasonable amount of time to accommodate their need to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child.
(c) A campus of the California Community Colleges or the California State University may use an existing facility to meet the requirements specified in subdivision (a).
(d) Students shall not incur an academic penalty as a result of their use of the reasonable accommodations specified in this section, and shall be provided the opportunity to make up any work missed due to such use.
(e) Upon the construction of a new campus of the California Community Colleges or the California State University, the replacement, expansion, or renovation costing five million dollars ($5,000,000) or more involving plumbing of an existing building regularly used by students, including a student center, or the construction of a new buildingcosting five million dollars ($5,000,000) or more designed for use by students, the respective educational institution shall provide a sink in addition to the accommodations described in subdivision (a) in a room in the newly constructed campus or building, or in a room in the replaced, expanded, or renovated building. This subdivision only applies to an educational institution if the campus room currently designated for a lactating student to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child does not have a sink.
(f) This section does not require an existing room designated for a lactating student to express breast milk or breast-feed an infant child to have a sink.
(g) The lactation accommodation shall be available to a student whenever a student is required tobe present on campus.
(h) (1) A complaint of noncompliance with the requirements of this section may be filed consistent with Subchapter 5 (commencing with Section 59300) of Chapter 10 of Division 6 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations. If the complaint is found to have merit, the campus or appropriate appellate body shall provide a remedy to the affected student.
(2) A complaint of noncompliance with the requirements of this section may be filed consistent with the procedures established by the California State University for complaints by students of discrimination based on disability, gender, or other applicable characteristics, and a student shall be afforded any remedies the student is entitled to pursuant to those procedures.
(i) This section does not infringe on any right to breast-feed in public pursuant to Section 43.3 of the Civil Code or any other law.
(j) The requirements in this section shall be implemented by the California Community Colleges and the California State University, and the University of California is urged to implement the requirements in this section, no later than January 1, 2020.
(Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 947, Sec. 2. (AB 2785) Effective January 1, 2019.)
(Government Code sections 12900 through 12996):
The Fair Employment and Housing Act prohibits harassment and discrimination in employment because of race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, ancestry, mental and physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, age, military and veteran status, pregnancy, denial of medical and family care leave, or pregnancy disability leave. Government Code 12926 expands the definition of sex discrimination to include pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, plus any medically related conditions regarding pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding.
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General Resources:
(California Code, Government Code - GOV Ā§ 12945.6 ):
(a)āIt shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to do any of the following:
(1)āRefuse to allow an employee with more than 12 months of service with the employer, who has at least 1,250 hours of service with the employer during the previous 12-month period, and who works at a worksite in which the employer employs at least 20 employees within 75 miles, upon request, to take up to 12 weeks of parental leave to bond with a new child within one year of the child's birth, adoption, or foster care placement. āIf, on or before the commencement of this parental leave, the employer does not provide a guarantee of employment in the same or a comparable position upon the termination of the leave, the employer shall be deemed to have refused to allow the leave. āThe employee shall be entitled to utilize accrued vacation pay, paid sick time, other accrued paid time off, or other paid or unpaid time off negotiated with the employer, during the period of parental leave.
(2)āRefuse to maintain and pay for coverage for an eligible employee who takes parental leave pursuant to this section under a group health plan, as defined in Section 5000(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 , ā1 for the duration of the leave, not to exceed 12 weeks over the course of a 12-month period, commencing on the date that the parental leave commences, at the level and under the conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had continued to work in his or her position for the duration of the leave.
(b)āAn employee is entitled to take, in addition to the leave provided pursuant to this section, leave provided pursuant to Section 12945 if the employee is otherwise qualified for that leave.
(c)āThis section shall not apply to an employee who is subject to both Section 12945.2 and the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
(d)āAn employer may recover the premium that the employer paid as required by this section for maintaining coverage for the employee under the group health plan, if both of the following conditions occur:
(1)āThe employee fails to return from leave after the period of leave to which the employee is entitled has expired.
(2)āThe failure of the employee to return from leave is for a reason other than the continuation, recurrence, or onset of a serious health condition or other circumstances beyond the control of the employee.
(e)āIn any case in which both parents entitled to leave under subdivision (a) are employed by the same employer, the employer is not required to grant leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care of a child that would allow the parents parental leave totaling more than the amount specified in subdivision (a). āThe employer may, but is not required to, grant simultaneous leave to both of these employees.
(f)āParental leave taken pursuant to this section shall run concurrently to parental leave taken as described in Sections 44977.5 , 45196.1 , 87780.1 , and 88196.1 of the Education Code .
(g)āIt shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to refuse to hire, or to discharge, fine, suspend, expel, or discriminate against, an individual because of either of the following:
(1)āAn individual's exercise of the right to parental leave provided by subdivision (a).
(2)āAn individual's giving information or testimony as to his or her own parental leave, or another person's parental leave, in an inquiry or proceeding related to rights guaranteed under this section.
(h)āIt shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of, or the attempt to exercise, any right provided under this section.
(i)āFor purposes of this section, āemployerā means either of the following:
(1)āA person who directly employs 20 or more persons to perform services for a wage or salary.
(2)āThe state, and any political or civil subdivision of the state and cities.
(j)āTo the extent that state regulations interpreting the Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act, also known as the California Family Rights Act ( Sections 12945.2 and 19702.3 ), are within the scope of, and not inconsistent with this section or with other state law, including the California Constitution, the council shall incorporate those regulations by reference to govern leave under this section.
(k)āThis section shall take effect January 1, 2020.