According to a new resource kit produced by the Health Resources and Services Administration and entitled, The Business Case for Breastfeeding, businesses with a breastfeeding support program report a return on investment of two, three, or even four to one—that means that for every dollar invested in getting a breastfeeding support program up and running, an employer gets two, three or four dollars in return.

How? A well-established breastfeeding support program reduces employee turnover and absences, which translates into huge cost-savings for employers. Any employer will tell you that replacing a valuable employee is costly. Employee absences are not only expensive, they’re also inconvenient for the employer as well as other employees. And when mom breastfeeds, it means dad is absent from work less often as well. A 1995 study by Cohen and colleagues found that employees of breastfed versus formula-fed infants experienced substantially different absenteeism rates due to childhood illness. Approximately 28 percent of the infants in the study had no illnesses—86 percent of these were breastfed and 14 percent were formula-fed.

Other studies have also shown the effect of breastfeeding on health care costs—Ball (1999) reported that for every 1,000 babies “not” breastfed, there were an extra 2,033 physician visits, 212 hospitalization days, and 609 prescriptions.

So what does a lactation support program look like? There are lots of options, but most successful programs point to the following STEPs employers can take to support breastfeeding in the workplace:

S: Support
T: Time
E: Education
P: Place

S = SUPPORT
Breastfeeding mothers need support from their supervisors, colleagues, and other mothers.

T = TIME
This includes time for maternity leave as well as breaks for expressing milk
after returning to work.

E = EDUCATION
Information for both female employees and female partners of male employees would ideally be provided during the woman’s pregnancy or the early postpartum period, as well as after she returns to work. A comprehensive lactation support program includes access to professional lactation support from an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or other lactation expert.

P = PLACE
This refers to a private area for a woman to express her breastmilk or breastfeed her baby while she is at work.

Employers can take one step at a time and build from there. The more comprehensive the program, the better the return on investment!