Paid Leave & Workplace Policies
The Problem: No mother should have to choose between providing for her family economically or offering the best nourishment for her infant.
The Solution: Expanding family leave protections can reduce child mortality and improve health and economic outcomes.
Political leaders and employers can improve both economic and health outcomes by expanding maternity protection. Advocating for maternity protection is advocating for children to have the healthiest possible start to life, and to grow up to be stronger, smarter, and more productive. The World Breastfeeding Costing Initiative (WBCi) Report provides evidence for the importance of this investment.
Maternity protection laws and breastfeeding-friendly workplace initiatives may require multiple ministries, organizations, and the private sector to work together to ensure that nothing gets in the way of a mother’s ability to breastfeed her baby.
The International Labor Organization (ILO) Database lists maternity protection laws around the world and the WABA Maternity Protection Chart provides data on maternity and paternity leaves.
This section of the Breastfeeding Advocacy Toolkit also includes resources on implementing protections and breastfeeding-friendly practices in a variety of settings, including protections for working mothers in the informal economy.
