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A business course organized by Amazon faced criticism after a breastfeeding mother was prevented from attending the in-person event because her young child was not allowed on site. Rachel Bews had informed Amazon a week in advance that she would need to bring her 20-week-old baby with her during the session held at an Amazon warehouse in Dunfermline, Scotland. Despite this notice, she was told by phone while on the train to the venue that children under six years old were prohibited from entering the facility.
Amazon issued a statement expressing regret over the lack of clear communication regarding their site access policy before Bews traveled to the event. The company emphasized that their rule barring children under six applies uniformly to all visitors and staff and is rooted in health and safety concerns. They also mentioned ongoing efforts to improve how such policies are conveyed in the future to prevent similar situations.
Bews explained in an interview with the BBC’s The World Tonight that although the event had a designated lactation room where she could have expressed milk, she had not planned ahead with sterilized bottles or other necessary equipment for pumping. She pointed out that not all breastfed babies take bottles, highlighting the need for more inclusive and accessible arrangements at business events. For her, balancing new motherhood with her professional ambitions was particularly important, and she felt excluded from valuable in-person networking opportunities integral to the course experience.
While Amazon offered her continued participation in the online portion of the six-week program, Bews noted that she missed out on critical face-to-face interactions, including casual conversations over coffee and connections made during lunch breaks that could have benefited her business. The NHS reinforces the idea that breastfeeding while returning to work is feasible and encourages women to inform their employers about their breastfeeding status at the outset of their return. According to NHS guidance, many women successfully continue breastfeeding alongside their professional and educational commitments
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