My workplace has no place set up for pumping. It's a large corporation so I was a bit surprised. I contacted HR when I was 4mos along (currently 8mos along) and they're supposedly working on something. My DH works for the same parent company but at a different and much larger location. Although, my location has 6000 employees so it's not exactly small. DH asked his HR if they had something for nursing employees and was told that the women just use the locker room.
My HR hasn't told me to do this yet but my department will be meeting with HR next week and I may have the opportunity to speak to the VP of HR in private. He is supposedly in the loop on this. I got an update a few weeks ago from an HR manager and was told that the VP said they'd try to accommodate me but no promises. The locker room is connected to the bathroom just like something found at a gym. The only electrical outlet is in the bathroom area although the pump I'm planning on getting is the Medela hands free so the outlet isn't an issue for me like it might be for others. The only place to sit is on a bench. I'll have to pump on my lunch break and I'm expecting that I'll have to pump and eat at the same time which is why I'm forking over the money for the hands free pump. And (at the risk of sounding really petty) I'm not too excited about either sitting on the floor and using the bench as a table for my food or sitting on the bench hunched over to eat. And this is a pretty busy locker room especially during the times I'll need to pump. There are a few private changing cubicles but then I'll be sitting on the floor and using the floor as a table for my food. I know pumping in a bathroom at work is thought of to be not acceptable but what about a locker room like this? If the VP of HR suggests this, should I politely decline and ask for something more sanitary? If this is what other locations do then it'd be reasonable for them to tell me to do the same. I've been looking for pumping moms in there and I've never seen one.
I'm not expecting HR to come through for me so I spoke to my immediate boss and we found a private place in our work area that I can use during the times I'll need it. I'm not going to tell HR this because I'd like to see them come through for me and future moms. Either way, I won't be pumping in the bathroom or locker room but I just wanted to ask if a locker room falls into the same disgust category as a bathroom.
My HR hasn't told me to do this yet but my department will be meeting with HR next week and I may have the opportunity to speak to the VP of HR in private. He is supposedly in the loop on this. I got an update a few weeks ago from an HR manager and was told that the VP said they'd try to accommodate me but no promises. The locker room is connected to the bathroom just like something found at a gym. The only electrical outlet is in the bathroom area although the pump I'm planning on getting is the Medela hands free so the outlet isn't an issue for me like it might be for others. The only place to sit is on a bench. I'll have to pump on my lunch break and I'm expecting that I'll have to pump and eat at the same time which is why I'm forking over the money for the hands free pump. And (at the risk of sounding really petty) I'm not too excited about either sitting on the floor and using the bench as a table for my food or sitting on the bench hunched over to eat. And this is a pretty busy locker room especially during the times I'll need to pump. There are a few private changing cubicles but then I'll be sitting on the floor and using the floor as a table for my food. I know pumping in a bathroom at work is thought of to be not acceptable but what about a locker room like this? If the VP of HR suggests this, should I politely decline and ask for something more sanitary? If this is what other locations do then it'd be reasonable for them to tell me to do the same. I've been looking for pumping moms in there and I've never seen one.
I'm not expecting HR to come through for me so I spoke to my immediate boss and we found a private place in our work area that I can use during the times I'll need it. I'm not going to tell HR this because I'd like to see them come through for me and future moms. Either way, I won't be pumping in the bathroom or locker room but I just wanted to ask if a locker room falls into the same disgust category as a bathroom.
I've pumped my milk in a women's locker room. I didn't have much time between classes to eat my lunch and pump my milk at my usual spot (in a counsellor's office), so I went to the locker room before my physical education class. One of my female classmates walked in while I was sitting on the bench pumping my milk. I thought it was kind of funny, she may have been embarrassed to walk in at such a time.
