New Hampshire has enacted legislation (House Bill 358), which requires employers to provide unpaid time for employees to express milk. House Bill 358 takes effect on July 1, 2025.
The Details
Employers with six or more employees working in New Hampshire must provide employees that need to express milk:
- An unpaid break of approximately 30 minutes to pump, for every three hours of work, which may be taken with break or meal periods provided by the employer.
- Reasonable and sufficient spaces in the workplace (permanent or temporary, but not a bathroom) for an employee to express milk for at least one year following the birth of a child. The spaces must be:
Employers and employees may negotiate different terms for reasonable break periods other than those provided by the law, but employers cannot require employees to make up time for breaks used to express milk.
Note: Under the law, expressing milk is the initiation of lactation by manual or mechanical means, but it does not include breastfeeding.
Employer Policy Requirements
Employers must adopt a policy to address the provision of sufficient space and reasonable break periods for nursing employees that need to express milk during working hours and provide it to employees at their time of hire.
Employee Notice Requirements
Employees must provide their employer at least two weeks of notice prior to the need for breaks and a space to express milk.
Exceptions
Certain employers may be exempt from the law if they can prove an undue hardship that requires significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to factors such as the size of the business, its financial resources and the nature and structure of its operation.
Additionally, the law does not cover an individual that volunteers their services for a charitable or religious facility without expectation or promise of pay.
Next Steps
- Adopt a policy to help ensure compliance with the requirements of House Bill 358 by July 1, 2025.
- Train supervisors and hiring personnel on the law’s requirements.