STAND. COM. REP. NO. 294

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 189
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Labor and Environment, to which was
referred S.B. No. 189 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO NEW MOTHERS BREASTFEEDING
     PROMOTION AND PROTECTION ACT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to prohibit discriminatory
employment practices against women who breastfeed or express
milk.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure
from the Hawai`i Civil Rights Commission, Kokua Kalihi Valley,
Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies, MothersCare for Tomorrow's
Children, Kapi`olani Medical Center, and five individuals.

     Your Committee finds that numerous studies over the years
have shown that breastfeeding is beneficial to both the mother
and the infant.  For mothers who work outside the home, however,
the ability to continue breastfeeding or expressing breast milk
is often dependent on the woman's employer.

     Your Committee has heard that rather than make it unlawful
to refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against a
woman who breastfeeds her child or expresses breastmilk at work,
as the measure was introduced, it would be preferable to have a
clear statement in the law that women may breastfeed or extract
milk at work.


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 294
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     Your Committee has amended this measure to delete the
amendments to section 378-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS),
relating to unlawful discriminatory practices, and, instead, has
expanded the definition of "because of sex" in section 378-1,
HRS, to include breastfeeding or extracting expressed milk.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Labor and Environment that is attached to this
report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose
of S.B. No. 189, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass
Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 189,
S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Labor and
                                   Environment,



                                   ______________________________
                                   BOB NAKATA, Chair

 
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