Castellán

Breastfeeding rooms have as their main objective to avoid the interruption of breastfeeding when new mothers have to return to work, as it is considered an essential right for newborns and young children, for their better development and growth.

In order to guarantee the above, since June of this year, the adaptation of areas exclusively designated and conditioned for breastfeeding of children, as well as for the extraction, storage, and preservation of breast milk, has become mandatory.

Which companies are required?

In this regard, the Law provides that they must be installed in the “buildings or premises” of companies where at least 20 women work or study, or where 50 or more employees work. In this sense, it is important to clarify that female workers aged 15 to 49 are included in the count.

However, when several employers carry out their activities in the same physical place (premises or building) and together they have the minimum number of required workers (even if not individually), they must also implement a breastfeeding room for the common use of all female workers. Likewise, it is provided that in companies where there is a breastfeeding room for the general public, it can be used by female workers, giving them priority for its use.

Despite the above, the regulation has provided that even in cases where the required number of employees mentioned above is not reached, the company must still provide the use of a “space” or “area” with similar characteristics, for the same purposes (breastfeeding, extraction, milk preservation, etc.), when one or more women (included or not within the age limits mentioned) who are actually breastfeeding work in the premises.

What conditions or requirements must the Rooms and “spaces” meet?

The recently enacted regulatory decree No. 234/018, dated July 30, 2018, complemented the general framework of requirements that had already been established in Law No. 19,530. Some of them are highlighted below.

Firstly, it is provided that the Breastfeeding Rooms be properly identified to facilitate their location. They must be used exclusively for the specified purposes, ensuring privacy and availability for their use during the entire operating hours of the place.

On the other hand, regarding hygiene conditions, it is established that they must be completely independent from the sanitary services and located away from places where toxic substances and waste are handled. Daily cleaning of the room and its furniture must be ensured, and it must have a sink or washbasin with running water, among other requirements.

As for the storage system for the extracted milk, it has been strictly regulated, establishing that the freezer, refrigerator, or cooler to be used must guarantee the cold chain and be exclusively for the use of the breastfeeding room, located 20 cm above the floor and with its own power outlet. In addition, other physical characteristics of the room are provided, such as having its own lighting and ventilation, whether natural or artificial, containing a chair or seat with a washable backrest material.

Regarding the “spaces” or “areas” to be provided in facilities that do not have the required number of people to permanently install a Breastfeeding Room, the conditions required by the regulations are very similar to those mentioned above.

Communication and Control

The regulation provides that once the Breastfeeding Room is set up, it must be reported to the Ministry of Public Health. The decree has established that the communication process will be through instructions to be published soon. On the other hand, the “spaces” designated for breastfeeding, unlike the rooms, do not need to be reported in the terms mentioned when implemented. For control purposes, the Ministry of Public Health may send the list of implemented Breastfeeding Rooms to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, which, through the General Labor and Social Security Inspection, will oversee compliance with the regulations, cross-check data from the work records of each company, and may impose economic sanctions.

Interruption of the workday for breastfeeding

It is essential to note that regulatory decree No. 234/018 modifies what was established in article 3 of the Executive Decree dated June 1, 1954.

The new regulation authorizes the breastfeeding worker to interrupt her work for this purpose, “during two periods of half an hour each or one period of one hour at the worker's choice within her daily workday, which will be counted as effective work…”. For this, it is expressly established the obligation of employers to allow female workers to interrupt their work and use the time for breastfeeding, regardless of the break, with the health institution's reference doctor of which the worker is a user being responsible for determining the duration of the breastfeeding period.

Final reflection

Considering that the mentioned regulations are already in force, we emphasize the importance of knowing their content and keeping in mind the requirements that the breastfeeding rooms and “spaces” must meet, in order to properly implement them and, at the same time, avoid economic sanctions imposed by the aforementioned organizations.

Montevideo, August 15, 2018