California State Lactation Policies

California Labor Code Chapter 3.8: Lactation Accommodation (1)

To Whom Does It Apply?



The Lactation Accommodation chapter of the California Labor Code applies to every employer in the state of California, including the State itself and any political subdivision or body of the State. “Employer” is defined broadly within the California Labor Code, and should be construed to include employers of independent contractors and part-time employees, as well as traditional full-time employees.

Work Break Requirements



Every employer must provide a reasonable amount of break time to accommodate nursing mothers. The break time shall, if possible, run concurrently with any break time already provided to the nursing mother. Break time that does not run concurrently with already allotted breaks does not need to be paid. 

Lactation Space Requirements 



The employer must provide nursing mothers with use of a room or other location to express milk in private. The room or location may include the place the employee already works if it meets the following requirements; the space must: 

  • (1) Not be a bathroom;
  • (2) Be in close proximity to the nursing mothers’ work area, shielded from view, and free from intrusion;
  • (3) Be safe, clean, and free of hazardous materials;
  • (4) Contain a surface to place a breast pump and personal items;
  • (5) Contain a place to sit;
  • (6) Have access to electricity or alternative devices, including, but not limited to, extension cords or charging stations needed to operate electric or battery powered breast pumps;
  • (7) Have access to a sink with running water and refrigerator that is suitable for storing milk (or similar cooling device if a refrigerator cannot be provided); and
    If a sink or refrigerator cannot be placed in the lactation room, it may be placed in close proximity to the employee’s workspace.
  • (8) When the lactation space is a multi-purpose space, the use of the room for lactation must take precedence over any other uses, but only for the time it is needed by nursing mothers. Be in close proximity to the nursing mothers’ work area, shielded from view, and free from intrusion;

Can The Space Be Shared?



Yes, an employer in a multitenant building or multiemployer worksite may comply with the state lactation accommodation laws by providing a space shared among multiple employers within the building or the worksite if the employer cannot provide a lactation space in the employer’s own private workspace.

Temporary Lactation Spaces

Temporary lactation spaces are acceptable in the event of operational, financial, or space limitations, subject to the following limitations: 

  • (1) Bathrooms are not permissible temporary lactation spaces;
  • (2) Temporary spaces must still be  in close proximity to the employee’s work area, shielded from view, and free from intrusion while the employee is expressing milk; and
  • (3) Temporary spaces should be functionally compliant with all rules applicable to permanent lactation spaces.

Exempt Employers



An employer is not required to provide break time under Chapter 3.8 of the California Labor Code if to do so would seriously disrupt the operations of the employer. An employer that employs fewer than 50 employees may be exempt from the space requirements if it can demonstrate undue hardship. It must instead make best efforts to provide the employee with use of a room, other than a toilet stall, in close proximity to the employee’s work area, where the employee can express milk in private.

Penalties



An employee may file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner of California. Employers may not fire, discriminate, or retaliate against an employee for exercising or attempting to exercise any rights provided under this section of the California Labor Code. If the employer is found to be in violation of this section the employer may have to pay a fine of $100 a day for each day that the employee is denied reasonable break time or adequate space to express milk. 

  1. For more information on lactation accommodation requirements under the California Labor Code, see the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) Enforcement Policies and Interpretations Manual at Section 17, pages 8-9 (dlse_enfcmanual.pdf (ca.gov)).

Updated as of: 08.01.2024