H-2621.2  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1194

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

By House Committee on Commerce & Labor (originally sponsored by Representatives Cody, McMorris, Clements, Conway, Wood, Hatfield, Honeyford, Romero, Skinner, Dyer, Chopp, Murray, Morris, Keiser, Cooper and Mason)

Read first time 03/05/97.

Requiring employers to allow mothers to breast-feed.

    AN ACT Relating to infant breast-feeding; and adding a new section to chapter 49.12 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 49.12 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) The legislature finds that breast-feeding of an infant is an important and basic act of nurture which must be encouraged in the interests of maternal and child health and of family values.  The legislature recognizes that workplace policies protecting a woman's right to choose to breast-feed her child will further these important goals.

    (2) An employer must provide a location at the workplace to allow a woman to express breast milk except where reasonable safety or security considerations require other options.  Providing a clean lavatory designed for women or a clean lavatory with a locking door meets this requirement.

    (3)(a) An employer may use the designation "baby-friendly" on its promotional materials if the employer has an approved workplace breast-feeding policy addressing at least the following:

    (i) Flexible work scheduling, including scheduling breaks and permitting work patterns that provide time for expression of breast milk;

    (ii) Accessible locations allowing privacy for breast-feeding or expressing breast milk;

    (iii) An accessible clean and safe water source with facilities for washing hands and rinsing breast-pumping equipment; and

    (iv) An accessible hygienic storage alternative in the workplace for the mother's breast milk.

    (b) Employers seeking approval of a workplace breast-feeding policy shall submit the policy to the department of health.  The department shall review and approve those policies that meet the requirements of this section.

    (4) For the purposes of this section, "employer" includes those employers defined in RCW 49.12.005 and also includes the state, state institutions, state agencies, political subdivisions of the state, and municipal corporations or quasi-municipal corporations.

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