‘People thought I was taking extra breaks’: The hidden pressures breastfeeding mothers face at work

When finance professional Amanda (not her real name) returned to work four months after giving birth to her first child in 2022, she found that the physical infrastructure to support breastfeeding was in place. A dedicated mothers' room with private cubicles, hot water, sinks, and refrigerators for storing breast milk was available. However, Amanda quickly discovered that the true challenges lay not in the facilities, but in the workplace culture. Her boss raised concerns about her visibility in the office, and male colleagues made jokes about the convenience of taking breaks throughout the day. These comments left Amanda feeling self-conscious about the time she spent away from her desk. Each pumping session required approximately 40 minutes, including the long walk to the mothers' room in another office block, setting up her pump, expressing milk, cleaning up, and returning to her desk. Instead of pumping twice during the workday, she reduced it to just one session during her lunch break. "I just couldn't deal with the perceptions that I had to manage around my breastfeeding," Amanda said. "I had to adjust my pumping schedule to fit work rather than my baby's needs." She noted that some leaders were more accommodating when a colleague needed time for a smoke break, yet less understanding when a mother required time to express milk. Amanda gave birth to her second child in March and is set to return to work soon. Reflecting on her previous experience, she has decided to stop breastfeeding once she resumes work. "When the workplace has these micro-aggressions and they are ignored by management and human resources, that's when I don't feel that it's a safe space to keep pumping," she explained. Amanda's experience is not isolated. A survey conducted by social enterprise Go!Mama revealed that nearly nine in 10 mothers who had breastfed within the past five years faced at least one practical work-related barrier. These barriers included insufficient time to express milk, difficulty balancing breastfeeding and work commitments, or the lack of suitable spaces. About two-thirds of respondents indicated that returning to work altered how they approached breastfeeding, whether through shortening pumping sessions, changing feeding methods, or ceasing earlier than planned. The survey, involving 202 mothers, is part of a broader nationally representative study anticipated to be published later in 2026. Interim results were shared on August 4 at the inaugural Global Women’s Health Equity Summit hosted by Go!Mama at the Asian Civilisations Museum. The summit, which coincided with Go!Mama's fifth anniversary, featured discussions on women, breastfeeding, and parenthood. KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital informed The Straits Times that the percentage of mothers initiating and exclusively breastfeeding upon discharge has remained consistent over recent years. Both in 2021 and 2026, roughly 86 percent of mothers reported exclusively breastfeeding upon discharge. Similarly, Singapore General Hospital stated that its breastfeeding rates upon discharge have remained stable at around 90 percent. According to the World Health Organization, infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life for optimal growth and development, with breastfeeding continuing up to two years and beyond, accompanied by appropriate complementary foods. Breastfeeding advocates emphasize that the current challenge lies in assisting mothers to maintain breastfeeding after their maternity leave. The Breastfeeding Mothers’ Support Group frequently receives inquiries regarding how mothers can integrate expressing milk into their workdays. Many struggle to find time between meetings, coordinate pumping schedules, store expressed milk securely, or locate suitable private spaces, especially when traveling for work or attending events outside the office. Some mothers have turned to wearable breast pumps to express milk while working, while others have negotiated hybrid work arrangements or delayed their return to work. Some even resort to expressing milk in restrooms or storage areas, highlighting the ongoing need for supportive workplace environments.