The Carolina Women’s Center launched a new resource that will help supervisors and employees better understand nursing mothers’ rights to accommodation.The toolkit provides sections with information about the benefits of breastfeeding, lactation policies for supervisors and lactation policies for employees.
Dr. Clare Counihan, program specialist for faculty and staff, led the effort to create the toolkit with input from faculty governance committees. Dr. Counihan consulted the Committee on the Status of Women, the Faculty Welfare Committee, the Committee on Fixed-term Faculty and the Community and Diversity Committee, to gather information about faculty experiences and recommendations for improving access to breastfeeding accommodations.
Dr. Counihan also worked with the Office of Provost, the Office of Human Resources, and the Office of the Chancellor to secure financial resources to improve existing lactation spaces on campus and to create additional spaces to accommodate nursing mothers.
In addition, the Carolina Women’s Center maintains Parenting@UNC, a collection of resources related to pregnancy and caregiving.
Dr. Counihan will present the new toolkit as part of the diversity programming at the first meeting of the Faculty Council and General Faculty on Friday, September 16 in Kerr Hall, room 2001. A tentative agenda is available here.
