Puerto Rico Employers Face Expanded Expectations Under New Lactation Guidance

Takeaways

• Puerto Rico’s Office of Women’s Advocate has released a detailed compliance roadmap for workplace lactation accommodations.
• The guide recommends written policies, designated coordinators, employee education, operational procedures and accommodations for remote, hybrid and off-site workers.
• Employers should review their lactation programs to ensure compliance with the recommendations.

Article

The Puerto Rico Office of the Women’s Advocate (OPM) recently issued the “Guide for the Establishment and Operation of Lactation Rooms in Workplaces and Public Access Spaces,” providing comprehensive administrative guidance interpreting Puerto Rico’s Lactation Code, Act 87-2025. The Guide offers detailed recommendations regarding the implementation, administration, and operation of workplace lactation accommodations and provides insight into how the OPM expects employers to comply with the Code.

Although the Guide does not amend Act 87 or create new statutory obligations, it provides a more expansive compliance framework that extends beyond physical lactation-space requirements to address written policies, operational procedures, personnel responsibilities, employee education, and accommodations for remote and non-traditional work arrangements. Employers should assess their existing practices to ensure they are consistent with the Guide.

Background

Act 87-2025 brought Puerto Rico’s various lactation-related laws together under a single statutory framework and established broad rights for nursing employees. Among other requirements, employers must provide private, sanitary, and secure lactation spaces with basic amenities (including access to water, electrical outlets, ventilation, seating, and refrigeration) and allow eligible employees paid lactation breaks. The law also prohibits discrimination and retaliation related to the exercise of lactation rights.

Although Act 87 established the legal framework for workplace lactation accommodations, many compliance and implementation issues remained unresolved. The Guide seeks to provide additional direction with detailed recommended practices for administering, operating, and overseeing lactation accommodations in the workplace.

What the New Guide Adds

The Guide supplements Act 87 by offering employers a more detailed compliance roadmap and addressing a number of operational issues the statute leaves unresolved. Key topics include:

• Telework and remote employees: The Guide confirms that employees working remotely or in hybrid arrangements are entitled to the same lactation rights as on-site employees. Employers may not use telework to limit access to paid lactation periods. In addition, employers may not schedule virtual meetings, training sessions, performance evaluations, or similar activities during designated lactation breaks unless the employee expressly agrees to participate. The Guide also emphasizes the importance of employee privacy, advising that employees should not be required to keep cameras, microphones, or other audiovisual communication tools activated while expressing milk and that electronic monitoring practices should not interfere with the exercise of lactation rights.
   
• Employees working at client or third-party locations: The Guide clarifies that employers remain responsible for ensuring nursing employees with access to compliant lactation accommodations even when they perform work at customer sites, contractor facilities, hospitals, or other third-party locations. Employers may use lactation rooms provided by third parties, provided employees can reliably access them during their lactation periods. If no compliant space is available, employers are expected to explore reasonable alternatives and evaluate whether their existing arrangements with clients or business partners adequately address these obligations.
   
• Shared lactation rooms: The Guide recognizes that employers in multi-tenant environments, such as office buildings, shopping centers, industrial parks, and similar facilities, may meet their obligations by providing access to a shared lactation room. Even where a shared facility is used, employers remain responsible for ensuring nursing employees have timely access to the facility and appropriate safeguards for privacy and breast milk storage. The Guide also recommends implementing procedures on room access, scheduling, maintenance, and room administration.
   
• Designation of a lactation room coordinator(s): The Guide recommends assigning a coordinator, preferably within Human Resources, to oversee lactation accommodations, serve as the primary point of contact for employees for information on accommodations and lactation rights, coordinate access to the lactation spaces, oversee maintenance and supplies, and help ensure compliance. The coordinator may also support employees returning from maternity leave and promote awareness of available resources.
   
• Written policies and procedures: The Guide recommends adopting written policies governing lactation accommodations, including access, scheduling, emergency plans for power or water interruptions, milk storage, room usage logs, and employee responsibilities. It also recommends providing information on lactation rights, required forms or notifications, and available government enforcement resources.
   
• Expanded operational standards: The Guides sets detailed expectations for the location, accessibility, privacy, maintenance, and day-to-day administration of lactation rooms. It addresses issues such as room signage, sanitation, safe milk storage, emergency contingency, and the equipment and supplies that should be available to employees. It also reinforces privacy protections such as prohibiting surveillance cameras and requiring appropriate safeguards to prevent unauthorized access or viewing.
   
• Employee education and awareness: The Guide emphasizes that employers should educate employees about lactation rights and accommodations available under Act 87 and the Guide and promote a respectful and supportive workplace free from discrimination, stigma, or interference.
   
• Voluntary extension of the lactation period: The Guide clarifies that employers are not required to extend lactation breaks beyond the statutory 12-month period but may do so voluntarily. The Guide cautions that any extensions offered or granted should be administered consistently and in a non-discrimination manner. Employers may also establish reasonable procedures for requesting and evaluating extensions. 
   
• Enforcement and penalties: The Guide reiterates the OPM’s authority to inspect public and private workplaces to verify compliance with lactation-room requirements. It also highlights the administrative, civil, and enforcement remedies available under Act 87 and the OPM’s authority to investigate complaints and, where appropriate, pursue claims on behalf of affected employees.

Practical Implications for Employers

The Guide signals that compliance extends beyond providing a lactation room. The OPM envisions a structured program supported by written procedures, designated personnel, ongoing maintenance, employee education, and operational protocols.

Accordingly, private-sector employers should consider:

• Reviewing whether existing lactation rooms satisfy both the statutory requirements and the Guide recommendations. 
• Updating employee handbooks and workplace accommodation policies. 
• Establishing written procedures on the administration and use of lactation accommodations. 
• Evaluating how lactation accommodations will be handled in remote-work, hybrid-work, and off-site work arrangements. 
• Reviewing arrangements with clients, contractors, and third-party facilities where employees regularly perform work. 
• Training supervisors and Human Resources personnel regarding employees’ rights under Act 87 and the employer’s obligations.

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The OPM Guide provides employers a comprehensive administrative guidance interpreting the Code and reflects the government’s expectations for workplace lactation accommodations. Employers should use the Guide as a compliance roadmap to review and strengthen their lactation policies, procedures, and accommodation practices.

Please contact a Jackson Lewis attorney with any questions about this and other workplace issues.