Can an employee take leave for breastfeeding?

Is breastfeeding leave for workers included in maternity leave?

There is no special leave for breastfeeding in France

There is no legal leave for breastfeeding. Only some collective agreements have this type of leave implemented, like the audiovisual collective agreement, for example.

Leaving after a pathological birth

In that agreement, it is stipulated that “upon presentation of a medical certificate of need, additional paid leave of four weeks for breastfeeding can be granted at the end of the maternity leave”.

This leave, which in reality is called leave “for the consequences of pathological childbirth”, is mostly approved by doctors in the case of breastfeeding.

Is it possible to breastfeed or express milk during working hours?

Duration of breastfeeding leave

The law (Article L1225 of the Labor Code) allows employees to take leave during working hours to breastfeed or express milk. And for the duration of one year from the day of the child’s birth. This leave for breastfeeding is allowed for up to one hour a day, in two periods:

30 minutes during the morning.
30 minutes during the afternoon.

When to breastfeed during the working day

The employer and the employee agree on the desired time in the morning and afternoon. In the absence of an agreement, the breastfeeding period is taken in the middle of each half-day’s work.

It should be noted that the breastfeeding time is reduced to 20 minutes if the employer provides the employee with a specific room for breastfeeding.

Let me note : breastfeeding breaks are not paid, unless the collective agreement stipulates otherwise.

What about breastfeeding in the civil service?

Civil servants can breastfeed a child at the workplace for a maximum of one hour a day, divided into two periods.

And that only if the place of care for the child is integrated into the work structure. If the child is cared for nearby, the mothers can be assigned services of services.

Should the employer provide a breastfeeding room?

Obligation depending on the number of employees

The employer is not always obliged to equip the workplace with a room intended for breastfeeding.

In fact, in companies with less than 100 employees, the provision of a breastfeeding room is not mandatory. An employee can take a “breastfeeding” break at or outside the workplace.

On the other hand, in companies with more than 200 employees, the labor inspector has the possibility to issue an official warning to the employer to set up a specific room for breastfeeding inside his plant or, if there is none, nearby.

Characteristics of space

The rooms installed in this way must have certain characteristics, in particular:

It must be separated from other working rooms.
It must have adequate lighting, and air renewal must be continuous.
It must have ventilation and windows or other openings with movable frames that open directly to the outside.
It must be with water or near the sink.
The temperature must be suitable.
Daily cleaning is mandatory, outside the presence of children.
Adequate seating should be provided to facilitate breastfeeding.

Is there a breastfeeding bonus paid by Caf?

No legal provision provides for the payment of a breastfeeding allowance. The Family Allowance Fund (CAF) does not pay this type of bonus.

On the other hand, some mutual insurance companies offer, according to conditions and duration that differ from one mutual insurance company to another, a bonus to help breastfeeding mothers in the first months after childbirth.

Therefore, you should contact your mutual insurance company to find out more.

Let me note : the legal provisions in France regarding breastfeeding at work are very old. Many developments are expected…