Employment
Employment is now the norm for U.S. women of childbearing age. In 2009, 50.1% of all mothers with children younger that 12 months were employed, and 69% of those employed worked full-time (35 or more hours per week).1
Employed women currently are less likely to initiate breastfeeding, and they tend to breastfeed for a shorter length of time than women who are not employed. Most employed mothers who are lactating must express milk at work for their children and should be provided with accommodations to do so.
References
- U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 6. Employment status of mothers with own children under 3 years old by single year of age of youngest child and marital status, 2008–09 annual averages; 2010. Available at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/famee.t06.htm. Accessed July 20, 2010.
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