You might be wondering what this wacky boobbatical word is all about - so let's break it down. The first part, “boob,” celebrates the miracle female body part that can provide nourishment and comfort for little ones as they enter the world. Breastfeeding hasn't always been in vogue, but popularity has increased in recent years. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention found that over 80% of women in the US who gave birth in 2019 at least attempted to breastfeed their newborns. That means if you can name 10 expectant mothers, 8 of them are planning to nurse. Truly an incredible statistic!
Unfortunately, the rate of women breastfeeding drops to 56% after 6 months and just 36% after one year due to a variety of barriers - including unsupportive workplace policies. That leads us to the second part: as you may have guessed, the “batical” is a nod to “sabbatical”. Sabbaticals are typically associated with the academic world where professors are granted a predetermined amount of time off - typically a year - with the expectation that they'll return to their employer after that time has expired. Sometimes they're paid during that time, sometimes not.
When a new mom decides to take extra time off, instead of feeling like she's sidelining her career or being looked at negatively, we want her decision to be met with the same reaction as a professor taking sabbatical. She's still a dedicated employee who values her career, she simply needs to take a pause and focus on caring for her newborn. Our aspiration is that someday she will be able to say she's taking a boobbatical without uncomfortable explanations and that her employer will enable her to take that time off.
While we recognize that employers will have varying policies in this space, we're here to help them optimize their offerings and ensure team members returning from maternity leave have all the workplace support they need when it comes to breastfeeding.
A boobbatical is an extended period of time away from work where a mother focuses on breastfeeding and/or caring for her newborn.
Boobbatical vs maternity leave
They sound similar, right? Both are intended to provide support to new mothers. Maternity leave (or sometimes referred to as family leave) has built up a reputation as being the bare minimum required of employers though. In the US, employees using maternity leave are often required to lean on the 12 weeks mandated by FMLA, asked to use vacation or sick time, and put on short-term disability with little or no additional time granted outside of those buckets. This approach does little to show moms of newborns that they're supported and valued by their employers. Boobbaticals on the other hand, extend well past the minimum required of employers and typically involve a multi-faceted approach to support.
