Become a Breastfeeding Family Friendly Community Partner and Employer. The payoff is significant!
As a Community Partner:
Improve employee and customer loyalty and satisfaction.
Build a welcoming, healthier community.
As an Employer:
Lower healthcare and insurance costs with healthier babies and their parents – your employees.
Reduce absenteeism rates due to infant illness.
Lower employee turnover rates.
Want to Learn More?
Continue reading for more information and resources!
Ready to apply?
Complete the application (https://bit.ly/CommunityPartnerEmployerAward).
Community Partner Designation
Community Partners support nursing customers, employees, members, and patrons. To become a Community Partner, your business or organization attests to the following:
- Breastfeeding, chestfeeding, and human milk feeding families are always welcome and respected. They will never be treated poorly, asked to stop nursing, or asked to cover up or move.
- Our business/organization does not advertise infant formula or related products directly to families.
- We support all breastfeeding, chestfeeding, and human milk feeding families inclusive of their race, ethnicity, immigration status, nationality, creed, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, family structure, primary language, ability, or class.
Employer Designation
National Breastfeeding Month 2026 continues with Workplace Lactation Week | September 1-7. The week aligns with Labor Day to highlight the vital role that employers play in supporting their lactating employees. Learn more about supporting your employees.
Employers support lactating employees. To receive the Employer award, your business or organization attests to the Community Partner statements above and to the following:
- All lactating employees are allowed breaks to express milk or nurse their children.
- All lactating employees are allowed access to a private space for expressing milk. The location is shielded from view and includes an electrical outlet. The space is not a bathroom.
- The space has a hand hygiene station (hand sanitizer or sink nearby).
There also are recommended statements to consider:
- The space is lockable.
- We have a written lactation support policy, and we share it with our staff to ensure awareness of workplace support. (Policy sample: https://breastfeedingcommunities.org/new-lactation-policy-template/)
- Supervisors are encouraged to work with lactating employees in making reasonable accommodations to help them reach their goals.
Learn More about Supporting Your Lactating Employees
• U.S. Department of Labor:
Fair Labor and Standards Act protections for nursing employees for more information about the 2022 PUMP Act. (https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/pump-at-work)
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Office of Women’s Health:
Supporting Nursing Moms at Work: Employer Solutions for ways to support your lactating employees.
Business Case for Breastfeeding Tool Kit: Resources For Building a Lactation Support Program provides information, resources, and guidance to help you to provide worksite lactation support.
Business Case for Breastfeeding Easy Steps to Supporting Breastfeeding Employees.
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services:
Making It Work Toolkit. Although created before the 2022 Pump Act, this toolkit continues to provide helpful information and resources.
• US Breastfeeding Committee Workplace Lactation Accommodations: Employer Toolkit
How to Apply for the Community Partner and Employer Award
To be recognized as a Breastfeed Orange NC Community Partner and Employer, complete the short application (https://bit.ly/CommunityPartnerEmployerAward).
You can use the link above to go directly to the award form, or you can learn more about the award and the importance of supporting breastfeeding, chestfeeding, and human milk feeding families on the Breastfeed Orange NC website (https://breastfeedorangenc.org/) – Finding Resources for Community Partners and Employers (http://bit.ly/LearnAboutCommunityPartnerEmployerAward).
When designated, you will receive a “Breastfeeding Welcome” 3”x3” static window cling to display, and your business or organization will be listed on the Breastfeed Orange NC website (https://breastfeedorangenc.org/finding-businesses/).
The Breastfeed Orange NC team also can share your information with the NC Breastfeeding Coalition to list on their website (www.ncbfc.org).
Questions?
Click here for a pdf version of the information for easy downloading.
If you have any questions or need additional information, please reach out to the team at orangenc@breastfeedingcommunities.org.
The Breastfeed Orange NC team is here to help!