October 22, 2020

Breastfeeding in the Era of Zoom

If you’ve been a long-time reader of our blog, you’ll know that pregnancy and motherhood issues have been a source of many of our posts, long before coronavirus upended home and work life. High among the myriad issues related to employment and motherhood is that of breastfeeding. Many workplaces do not provide mothers with appropriate facilities or time to pump or nurse and others publicly shame mothers and even fire them. It has been the source of several lawsuits that we’ve covered, such as this one brought against Frontier Airlines by women flight attendants and pilots.

Obviously, things have changed dramatically since we wrote about the Frontier Airline suit, but one thing that hasn’t changed is how triggering breastfeeding seems to be. And in the era when many office jobs and classrooms have transitioned to video conferencing software and the home/work boundary continues to blur, it has become a source of major contention. Case in point is a recent story that caught our attention involving a student at Fresno City College, who was publicly called out by her professor for simply asking if she could turn her video off during a lecture to feed her 10-month old.

Not only did the professor, who instituted a requirement of video remaining on during the entirety of his 4-hour lecture, deny her request, according to Marcella Mares, the mother, he discussed the issue in a lecture, referring to it as one of a number of “inappropriate things” not allowed during class. Upon investigation by the college, it was clear that Mares’s rights under Title IX and California State law had been violated.

The switch to remote work since the pandemic began has been a period of rapid adjustment for many office workers and students. There are endless lists and think pieces about proper Zoom etiquette or attire, not to mention the trend toward women being heard even less. Should I eat while my professor lectures? Do I need to wear a tie to the team meeting? Can I turn my video off because there are other people in the house? Breastfeeding is indeed among these questions and with the workplace and the home now virtually the same thing, we foresee this not being the last time we read about mothers put on the spot because someone isn’t comfortable with a mother feeding her child.

Employers Can Create the Future We Deserve, or Exacerbate Discrimination Against Parents - Especially Women

October 6, 2020
Gender Discrimination
Paid Family Leave
More than 865,000 women “left” the labor market in September 2020, demonstrating that the COVID pandemic is forcing women out of work. One in four women who are still in the workforce are considering downshifting their careers, or leaving the workforce entirely, due to the pressures of work and family care.Employers who are concerned about retaining their employees who are parents, especially mothers, can take some steps to ensure that parents are not forced to “choose” their families over their careers.

Employer-based Health Insurance on Shaky Ground

September 29, 2020
No items found.
Employer-provided health care schemes are under severe strain and those who have already been laid off have been struggling to shore up the gaps in their coverage, all during a global health crisis.

Helping Parents During the Pandemic

September 23, 2020
No items found.
Parents’ predicaments has been a theme we’ve returned to again and again here at the Berke-Weiss Law Blog since the start of March, though our concern over working parents’, and especially mothers’, rights reaches back much longer than six months.

Get In Touch

Knowing where to turn in legal matters can make a big difference. Contact our employment lawyers to determine if we can help you.