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In celebration of #breastfeedingweek, a thread on ways the labour movement could support women who want and choose to breastfeed:
1. Financial support and essential supplies on the NHS: Breast pads, healing creams, silver cups, nursing bras etc are not free. Half your wardrobe will no longer be wearable. These are not frivolous purchases, they are essential
You can (quite rightly) get Healthy Start vouchers for formula milk in Wales, but you have to pay for pads to stop milk soaking through your clothes
If your milk is slow to come in and your baby loses too much weight (very common), you will need an electric pump. If you’re very lucky a midwife will have one available to loan. If not, that’s around £100 unplanned emergency expenditure
2. An end to insecure employment: the hours spent breastfeeding for a year are close to a full time job with three weeks’ holiday. Many women have to rush back to work to afford to live and aren’t afforded breaks and space to express milk. Breastfeeding IS labour
3. Facilities in workplaces:
Laws on providing women with breaks and facilities to express milk are very weak in the UK and very few employers factor breastfeeding into estates planning. If you’re a union rep or an HR staffer or a boss, get on it today
Laws on providing women with breaks and facilities to express milk are very weak in the UK and very few employers factor breastfeeding into estates planning. If you’re a union rep or an HR staffer or a boss, get on it today
Stop waiting for women to ask for facilities before they are provided. Very few will ask for a room when they know this means a much used meeting room or office or storage cupboard will be taken out of use. Normalise it and provide the damn space. With a little fridge.
4. Finally and possibly most importantly, we need urgent legislation to stop fashion brands putting buttons on tops and dresses that aren’t real buttons
