FROM: Sturgess, Frances Coulter TO:[log in to unmask] [log in to unmask] CC:[log in to unmask] SUBJECT: brfdg in the Military/Time mag Feb 24 DATE: 02-20-97 12:52 EST PRIORITY: Thanks for posting the excerpt from Time re Cuevas/lawsuit/wanting to brfeed/be released from her commitment as a pilot. I need to see the rest of this article, but, my main reaction after sympathy and concern is that in the civilian world, if a woman finds her employer unsupportive (so uncommon, right?) she can quit and take the consequences. (I wonder if there are other instances where a woman broke a contract and had to pay etc todo so...Any legal eagles on these lists?) But I have some other thoughts as well before shooting a letter off to TIME. 1) what happened to the "mandatory" maximum allowance of 4 mo maternity leave (paid or unpaid) employers are obligated to honor that (Ithought) was Federal Law? Is the army exempt? 2) Was she flying planes in her 9th month? 3) She/the Army must have had no idea how brfdg affects mom/infant bond/healthetc before they drew up that "commitment"--given how young you are when you enter West Point, AND how non-mainstream brfdg more than a few days is, this is no surprise. 4) I sympathize to some degree with the Major who switched to ABM at 6 weeks and called Cuevas "selfish." I think she would have liked to stay home with her babies too but did not consider it an option. She did an incredible job getting that far, I think, but in our efforts to liberate women, and make their opportunities "equal" to those of men, the babies have been awfully closeto being thrown out with the bath water, to quote an adage. (Anyone here watch the TV show JAG? a few weeks ago the whole story was women carrier pilots, capable/incapable, one of the "guys" and "not") 5) As to changing Army policy--I think they used to throw you out if you got pregnant, that has changed. I don't know how they handle maternity leave. I think to get *intentionally* pregnant/have children when you know it will significantly interfere with your capacity to do the work you have chosen to do is wrong, but the *best* of intentions do not always work out, and *obviously* the consequences are not always clear either. 6) I think this is an OPPORTUNITY for Lactation supporters/Change the World Nurture a CHild folks (hi Chris) to rally and speak out for breastfeeding support in the workplace! Bring out the broader issues--even if the case is lost, the PR op is there. 7) As to the peacetime army concept--well. An army is supposed to be ready todeploy at the drop of a hat, so I do not personally think that is a helpful argument for changing the terms of employment. I certainly hope we have no more wars, but IMHO, if you are not out there training in your fighter or whatever, you are a liability to your team. However! 8) Do we have any idea what sort of LC/counseling this woman has had to bring in her milk supply/nurse at night etc that Many Other Working Moms have had todeal with? I gather from other posts that CHAMPUS/military health doesn't cover such services. If they had them maybe this would have been less of a problem--another OPPORTUNITY. COmments? Mailto:[log in to unmask]