[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2758 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2758
To amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding by new
mothers and to provide for reasonable break time for nursing mothers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 1, 2011
Mrs. Maloney (for herself, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Lee of California, and Mr.
Serrano) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding by new
mothers and to provide for reasonable break time for nursing mothers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Breastfeeding
Promotion Act of 2011''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964
Sec. 101. Findings; purposes.
Sec. 102. Amendments to title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
TITLE II--REASONABLE BREAK TIME
Sec. 201. Reasonable break time for nursing mothers.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964
SEC. 101. FINDINGS; PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Women with infants and toddlers are a rapidly growing
segment of the labor force today.
(2) Statistical surveys of families show that over 50
percent of mothers with children less than 1 year of age are in
the labor force.
(3) All major medical authorities recommend that mothers
breastfeed exclusively for 6 months and continue breastfeeding
for at least the first year of a child's life, and that
arrangements be made to allow a mother's expressing of milk if
mother and child must separate.
(4) Research studies show that children who are not
breastfed have an increased risk of common childhood illnesses,
such as ear infections, eczema, and diarrhea and vomiting, and
of more serious diseases including severe lower respiratory
infections, leukemia, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
(5) Research studies have also shown that children who are
not breastfed have an increased risk of a number of chronic
diseases, including type 2 diabetes, asthma, and childhood
obesity.
(6) Exclusive breastfeeding and longer durations of
breastfeeding are also associated with better maternal health
outcomes, including a reduced risk of ovarian cancer and breast
cancer.
(7) The health benefits to children from breastfeeding
translate into a decrease in parental absenteeism due to infant
illness. One-day absences to care for sick children occur more
than twice as often for mothers of formula feeding infants.
(8) Congress intended to include breastfeeding and
expressing breast milk as protected conduct under the amendment
made to title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by the Act
entitled ``An Act to amend title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 to prohibit sex discrimination on the basis of
pregnancy'', approved October 31, 1978 (commonly known as the
``Pregnancy Discrimination Act'').
(9) Although title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as
so amended, applies with respect to ``pregnancy, childbirth, or
related medical conditions'', a few courts have failed to reach
the conclusion that breastfeeding and expressing breast milk in
the workplace are covered by such title.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this title are--
(1) to promote the health and well-being of infants whose
mothers return to the workplace after childbirth; and
(2) to clarify that breastfeeding and expressing breast
milk in the workplace are protected conduct under the amendment
made by the Act commonly known as the ``Pregnancy
Discrimination Act'' to title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964.
SEC. 102. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE VII OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.
Section 701(k) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e(k))
is amended--
(1) by inserting ``(including lactation)'' after
``childbirth''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following: ``For purposes of
this subsection, the term `lactation' means a condition that
may result in the feeding of a child directly from the breast
or the expressing of milk from the breast.''.
TITLE II--REASONABLE BREAK TIME
SEC. 201. REASONABLE BREAK TIME FOR NURSING MOTHERS.
Section 13 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 213)
is amended in subsection (a), by inserting ``(except section 7(r) in
the case of paragraph (1) of this subsection)'' after ``and 7''.
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