pumping at work

Ekg688

Anyone else getting the side eye for pumping? No one has said anything to me but I can feel the hate (lol, but not really). I could easily pump three times a shift but only do twice, one of which is during my lunch. Right now it takes about 20-25 minutes (set up, pump, breakdown, rinse parts) and my boss seemed pissed I was gone that long.

FTR I'm not letting this stop me from pumping and yes I know about the laws. Just wanted to vent and see who else is in the same boat

abrazz

Too bad they don't make pumps that fit on your pants so you can work while you are hooked to the machine lol.  It's hard at first but they will get used to it.  I was lucky that I could leave my things in the room I pumped without disturbing anyone or anything since I was the only nursing momma in my department. The set-up and tear-down takes quite a bit of time.  At the position I had when DD was born, they made the moms bring in their own coolers to store the milk and wouldn't let them put it in the fridge because other co-workers complained that it was a bio-hazard and they didn't want it around their lunches.  There were two girls pumping and they were going to buy a mini fridge together but the hospital wouldn't let them do that either because it was a liability to the hospital if it malfunctioned and caused a fire.  Seriously, it was awful.  I was in a different department and the girls I worked with told me to put it in the fridge and swore not to tell on me. 

missilini

I still have a few weeks left and I am having anxiety about pumping while at work. I shortened my hours so I should only have to pump 1x a day. I work in a small office and the room available to pump in is the bathroom. There is no bench or place to put my stuff. The thought of sitting on the ground or toilet grosses me out. My pump doesn't have batteries but I may get a car adaptor and pump there. Or I may quit pumping, I'm not sure. Does everyone have a room to pump in at work? Where will you be pumping?

brittajeanetta

@missilini‌ you do know that by law they can't make you pump in the bathroom. You might need to have the research there with you so they know they have to make different accommodations.

dobbyisfree

I am a retail pharmacist in your neighborhood drug store. I work 13 hour days. Our policy is you have 20 minutes of time every 4 hours, so at least the company is behind me. But there are literally cameras EVERYWHERE in the store. I thought I could pump in the managers office, but nope. I am going to have to take over the breakroom, but there is no door. Its going to be interesting... Im commited to it, but also nervous about the logistics. Plus, our customers have learned due to corporate policies that they can expect their medication to be dispensed like McDonalds, and waiting 20 minutes to talk to me is not going to be what they want to do. I honestly cant wait til one of them makes a complaint when the tech says itll be 25 minutes because I am unavailable. Bring it on.

ADC1979

I'll have to pump in our supply closet...which is hot as he'll because the server racks are in there, too. And like @amlonica‌ it'll be fun on Saturdays when I am the only librarian and people have to wait 20-25 mins to talk to me. We need the ability to post snarky gifs in real life to get those people to calm down!

kellbell440

I am very lucky. My office has a separate room with a shower, sink, and a bench where they store extra toilet paper, etc where I could store my stuff if I wanted to. I came back to work and they had a mini fridge waiting for me. I only pump once at work but I'm gone for about 45 minutes to an hour with setup and clean up. I very much get the impression that my team members think I should be staying an extra 45 minutes to make up the time but I'm so not going to! Pay me to pump, thank you very much.

acciovino

I feel the pressure for sure. Other people don't really rely on me for their job, but I still feel bad being gone so many times a day. That stress coupled with the fact that I'm not getting a good amount to keep up with LO at each session is stressing me out!

hgtvmom

For those of you who are hourly, do you clock in and out for pumping? Or are you paid for that time?

1982Babies

My situation is different because I work at home, but am still a scheduled hourly employee.  I pump about an hour before my dinner break, at my desk, topless.  I only pump once during my work shift, and immediately before and after.  My cat side-eyes me, but he's an asshole.

SuperTinkerham

I will be pumping in my office w the door locked. I'm debating on getting a mini fridge for my office, and I'm also considering buying a 2nd pump to keep up there just so I don't have to schlep the pump back and forth every day. There's a room available, but I can keep working at my desk. I'm just worried about all the foot traffic I get in my office.

reils500

I work for a school district & travel to all the schools. My plan is to pump in my car between schools and store the milk in a cooler. This is so not ideal.

jrinehart0

I'm also lucky, as I have my own office.  I plan to just pump in there.  I have a question for those who have done this before... I was planning to pump 3 times a day.  Once as soon as I got there, once during lunch and once near the end of the day.  Is this too much, is 2 times enough?  Thanks in advance!

Ekg688

I'm hourly and I don't punch. I'm not sure what the law is (in NY at least) but my boss is a Nazi when it comes to punches and she's never told me to punch.

argonne

Luckily, I can just undock my computer and work while I pump (engineer here). My lovely coworkers (mostly men) moved a nice comfy couch into an unused office so I could pump in there.

lowen83

Pup4gdb said:

For those of you who are hourly, do you clock in and out for pumping? Or are you paid for that time?

Some where your employer has this policy. I would check it out if I were you. I am hourly mon- fri 8:45-5:15 and I get three 20 minute pumping sessions a day. 2 are "breaks" that are paid and the third is done on my lunch hour which I clock out for.

honeybee434

I haven't quite figured out the logistics of everything. Im not hourly so federal law doesn't apply to me and I have to go with state laws. I'm still expected to work 8 hour days. Our state laws just state the employer has to give unpaid breaks to pump and I don't really want to be spending an extra hour at work each day so I can pump. I can do one on my lunch break and eat while pumping. I'm hoping the other two I can just keep to 15 minute sessions and and I can just work extra fast the rest of the day to make sure I get the rest of my work done. Worst case I'll work a couple extra hours from home each week if someone tells me it's a problem. I'm not sure where I'll be pumping, my boss is out of the office a lot of days so I can use his office. I need to get with the lady that handles things around the office to see if she can help me find a place. Our state just "encourages" employers to provide a room other than a bathroom, so they don't have to, but I think they will be nice and work with me.

ADC1979

@honeybee434 I believe having a room other than the bathroom is a federal regulation, not one mandated by states. So your employer will need to work something out.

honeybee434

@ADC1979‌ - from what I've read online the Fair Labor Standards Act only applies to hourly employees.

https://kellymom.com/bf/pumpingmoms/employed-moms/your-rights-as-a-breastfeeding-employee/

Soon2BMrsN

jrinehart0 said:

I'm also lucky, as I have my own office.  I plan to just pump in there.  I have a question for those who have done this before... I was planning to pump 3 times a day.  Once as soon as I got there, once during lunch and once near the end of the day.  Is this too much, is 2 times enough?  Thanks in advance!

With each of my sons, I started off pumping three times but was able to cut down to just twice once they were eating some solids. They either drank fewer oz by then (ds2) or I was somehow just able to keep up with demand by pumping twice (ds1). So I'd just play it by ear; maybe you can pump enough with just two sessions, maybe not.