By Galen Sherwin, ACLU Women's Rights Project at 3:49pm
Yesterday we told you about an amazing change in the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), lactation policy for nursing mothers. The new policy allows nursing mothers, to request extended or additional breaks to pump during the LSAT, for up to one year following childbirth.
We got involved after MomsRising contacted us about one of their members, Ashley Foxx, who was denied a lactation-related modification and was told she would either have to take the test without additional time to pump, wean her baby in time for the test date, or take the test when she was no longer breastfeeding.
Following action by the ACLU and numerous sister organizations, the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC), the organization that administers the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), recently announced a new lactation policy for nursing mothers. The new policy allows nursing mothers, to request extended or additional breaks to pump during the LSAT, for up to one year following childbirth.
By Galen Sherwin, ACLU Women's Rights Project at 11:08am
Tom Stemberg, co-founder of the Staples office supply chain, complained in a recent interview that the Affordable Care Act (known by opponents as “Obamacare”) will cost jobs by mandating that employers set up “lactation chambers.”
This statement came on the same day as a court ruling in Houston that firing an employee because she asked for a private place to pump breast milk wasn’t sex discrimination under federal law, because lactation is not “a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth.”
On October 1, 2011, I sat on the bathroom floor of the LSAT test center pumping milk for my 5 month old son. I felt dirty, embarrassed, stressed, and alone. Things no one should feel as they are in the midst of taking one of the most important exams of their life. An exam that is key to gaining entry into a profession that fights for and defends the rights of all individuals to compete on an even playing field so they can live up to their full potential.
By Galen Sherwin, ACLU Women's Rights Project at 2:04pm
Women should not be forced to choose between breastfeeding their babies and pursuing a legal education — right?
Wrong — at least according to the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC), the organization that administers the LSAT.
This summer, our sister organization, MomsRising, contacted us about one of their members, Ashley (she prefers that we use only her first name), a new mom who was planning to take the LSAT in October. Ashley had asked for additional break time so that she could pump breast milk for her 5 month old son during the test. (It typically takes half an hour to pump, but the LSAT only has one 15 minute break during the test). Her request was denied — when she initially called to request this accommodation, she was told she would either have to take the test under standard procedure, wean her baby in time for the October 1 test date, or opt to take the test at a later time when she was no longer breastfeeding. Seriously.
Imagine you've recently come back to work after maternity leave and you're using every last minute of your break time to pump breast milk to feed your baby at home. You just need a little help from your employer — an extra 20 minutes a few times a week. But your employer refuses to help, and tells you that, instead of breastfeeding your baby, you should consider switching to feeding him formula. Worse yet — imagine that after you complain, you're fired.
