Six Breastfeeding-Friendly Companies in the Philippines

The United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) reports that only 34% of mothers in the Philippines exclusively breastfeed, a low percentage considering that it is a developing country. Exclusive breastfeeding means giving the baby only breast milk for the first six months of life. In a 2003 study by the National Demographic and Health Survey, it is apparent that one of the reasons why a mother does not continue breastfeeding is because she has to go back to work SHE HAS TO GO BACK TO WORK.

Under Philippine laws, a mother is only given a maternity leave of 60 days for normal delivery, and 78 days for a caesarean delivery. This is relatively short compared to our neighbors like Australia and Indonesia, which grant new mothers 18 weeks of maternity leave. The babymoon itself, or the first six weeks after delivery to give the body time to heal and bond with the baby, is almost half of the Philippine maternity leave.

Some mothers who have other means to provide for their families financially take the option of resigning and taking care of their newborns. However, not everyone is as lucky and most working mothers need the additional income to meet basic needs, thus compromising breastfeeding.

The Expanded Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009, or Republic Act 10028 states that employers should provide lactation stations for nursing mothers, and provide appropriate lactation periods for mothers to express milk. In turn, they can get tax incentives provided that they get certified by the Department of Health (DOH).

 

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Out of sheer need, mothers who still choose to breastfeed but whose employers do not provide lactation rooms learn to improvise and instead express their milk in the privacy of empty rooms, stock rooms, server rooms, and, horrors – even comfort rooms.

Fortunately, companies are heeding the call of the working mom community. Here are some companies who have complied with the RA and provide breastfeeding rooms for nursing mothers:

1. Aegis People Support – One of the market leaders of outsourcing in the Philippines, Aegis People Support has nine breastfeeding  “portalets”, named Café Au Lait. These are small, yet functional rooms which have all the breastfeeding necessities like an electric outlet, a table, and a chair. Krystyna, who is still breastfeeding her one-year old son laughingly tells a story about having the in-house security question the contents of the breast pump, even shaking the cooler containing milk, during security checks. She also cites a supportive boss as a motivator for her to continue breastfeeding.

2. Accenture – One of the biggest IT and BPO companies in the Philippines, Accenture has nine breastfeeding rooms, or Diana Rooms on its sites. The Diana Rooms are conference rooms converted into nursing rooms, with a table, chairs, refrigerator, an outlet for electric pumps, and a log sheet. Each Diana Room has a sink nearby. Che, who breastfed son Sam for 7 months, says that she couldn’t have done it without her superior’s support to adjust her schedule to accommodate “pumping times”. Princess, who breastfed daughter Martina for 8 months, remembers fondly that she took conference calls in the Diana Room while pumping milk. Both Che and Princess telecommuted when the need arose (read: low milk supply), as Accenture provides this option to working mothers also.  

3. Citibank, NA -  One of the leading international bank institutions in the Philippines, Citibank N.A. has one lactation room converted into five cubicles which they call the Nursing Lounge. It has a table, chairs, a refrigerator and a sink. Cheska, who is still breastfeeding her one-year old daughter, shares that coming to an agreement with your boss in terms of nursing schedules helped her breastfeed long-term. She also disseminates breastfeeding information to her fellow breastfeeding mommies.  

 

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4. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas – The country’s central monetary authority, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has two lactation rooms, with one additional room under construction. Aptly called the Nursing Room, it has a table, chairs, an electrical outlet and a refrigerator. Jenny, one half of the pioneering tandem that pushed the creation of lactation rooms in BSP, just weaned her daughter from the breast at three-and-a-half years old. She recalls several incidents when her boss would accidentally walk into the room to find her pumping milk (whew, with a shawl covering her breasts).

5. Punongbayan & Araullo – A leading tax and audit firm, Punongbayan & Araullo (P&A) has two rooms for nursing. This is actually a nap room cum nursing room as there are still building a dedicated nursing room. Also referred to as the “Lounge”, it has a refrigerator, a sink, tables, chairs and an electrical outlet. Z (not his real name) recently married, is happy with these rooms and he is trying to influence his wife to breastfeed when they get pregnant.

6. Institutional Shareholder Services Inc (ISS) – A company which specializes in proxy voting and corporate governance services, (ISS) has one lactation room with a ref, electrical outlet, chairs and table. Iza, who is due to give birth in September , is very excited to use the nursing room when she returns from her maternity leave. She has set her mind to breastfeed her firstborn.

Schedule flexibility and management support play key roles in successful breastfeeding for working mothers … that, plus the never ending  - I – will – put-your-breast-milk-in-my-coffee-jokes made by well-meaning office mates.

This is a short list, but the writer hopes that it will grow longer so that many more mothers can find fulfilment in both their working and nursing lives.

Do you know of any more breastfeeding-friendly companies? Give us their details in the comments box below.


Sources:
•    Breastfeeding Statistics in the Philippines www.unicef.org/philippines/children/breastfeeding
•    www.unicef.org/infobycountry/philippines_statistics
•    www.nnc.gov.ph
•    Expanded Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 Copy
•    World Maternity Leave Table

Breastfeeding Company Data:
•    Babymama
•    Chronicles of a Nursing Mom
•    Accenture
•    Aegis People Support
•    Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
•    Citibank N.A
•    Punongbayan & Araullo
•    Institutional Shareholder Services Inc.


Photo by jeff.snodgrass via flickr creative commons