Breastfeeding Rights in UAE: Maternal Workplace Protections
An hour a day with no deduction from pay, and no regulation saying where to take it
The Labour Law gives a returning mother at least 45 days of paid maternity leave and an hour of nursing breaks each working day, with no deduction from salary. It does not require the employer to set aside a room. This article covers what Article 30 grants, what employers must provide, the sectors where breaks are hard to schedule, and how an employee complains to MOHRE.
Reviewed by Mohamed Noureldin, Founder, Managing Partner & Senior Legal Consultant
A woman returns from maternity leave and asks where she can express milk during the working day. The Labour Law is clear about the entitlement behind that question: at least 45 days of maternity leave on full pay, then an hour of nursing breaks in each working day, with no deduction from salary. It is far less clear about the arrangements. The hour may be taken in one block or split into two 30-minute breaks, subject to the employer’s operational requirements, and no regulation requires an employer to set aside a room. Most of what happens next is decided inside the workplace rather than by the statute.
The entitlement sits in Article 30
Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (the “Labour Law”) is the principal legal instrument governing employment relations in the UAE, including maternal workplace protections. Article 30 sets out the rights of female employees on maternity leave and nursing breaks.
A female employee is entitled to a minimum of 45 days of fully paid maternity leave, extendable under certain conditions. After maternity leave, the law mandates nursing breaks amounting to one hour per workday, which employers must accommodate without salary deductions. The hour can be split into two 30-minute breaks or taken as a single uninterrupted break, subject to the employer’s operational requirements.
That last qualification is where the entitlement can lose its value, because the flexibility may be used to reduce what the break is worth to the mother. The safeguard is contractual. Put the entitlement, and the way it is scheduled, into the employment contract and the internal policy, rather than settling it again every week.
Dismissal or disadvantage raises a discrimination question
The Labour Law prohibits discrimination on grounds related to gender and maternity, and that prohibition extends to breastfeeding rights. Employers who dismiss or disadvantage employees for exercising those rights may face legal challenges under the anti-discrimination provisions.
Failure to comply with the obligations can also result in administrative penalties, and in a higher risk of disputes, including claims of discrimination or violation of labour rights. An employee who wants to know where she stands before raising anything can take advice from our personal status law team.
The room nobody is required to provide
The Labour Law imposes an obligation on employers to provide nursing breaks and suitable facilities for breastfeeding or milk expression. Employers are expected to provide private, hygienic and accessible spaces within the workplace, which recognises the physiological and psychological needs of nursing mothers.
The law does not explicitly mandate dedicated lactation rooms. Best practice suggests that employers should provide them, to comply with the spirit of the legislation and with international labour standards. The absence of an explicit regulation creates an ambiguity that can be exploited, and it may lead some employers to deny facilities, which increases the risk of disputes.
Companies operating in UAE free zones, and multinational corporations, tend to set out more detailed accommodations. These include designated lactation rooms equipped with refrigeration for milk storage, comfortable seating and privacy screens. Smaller enterprises sometimes struggle to comply fully, because of space or resource constraints, and the risk is a dispute in which mothers must contend with inadequate facilities or unscheduled nursing breaks. These challenges show the need for legal guidance on solutions that are flexible yet compliant, such as rotating schedules or temporary private areas. Accommodations may also be adapted to the nature of the workplace, so that policies are context-sensitive while still adhering to the statutory requirements.
Internal regulations have to align with the statutory mandates, and our corporate governance advisory service supports that work.
Sectors where the break is hard to schedule
Sectors with physically demanding or non-traditional work environments pose practical problems. In construction, hospitality or healthcare, for instance, rigid shift patterns and physical labour may constrain the feasibility of scheduled breaks or lactation rooms. Employers and their legal advisers have to find answers that comply without compromising workplace safety or efficiency. Examples include designated relief personnel to cover nursing breaks, mobile lactation spaces, or flexible scheduling arrangements.
The pressures that sit outside the statute
Fear of retaliation or job loss may stop a mother from asserting the right at all. Employees in precarious employment situations or informal sectors are particularly vulnerable, and lack access to formal complaint mechanisms. Legal practitioners have to build accessible pathways for asserting rights, including confidential reporting channels and external remedies. Counselling on the rights, and on the avenues for recourse, is available from our compensation claims lawyers.
Cultural perceptions and societal attitudes towards breastfeeding in public or at the workplace also weigh on the decision. Some workplaces show stigma or discomfort around breastfeeding, and that affects a mother’s willingness to assert her rights. A policy that deals with the confidentiality of breastfeeding-related requests helps prevent stigma or discrimination. Beyond the individual workplace, there is a role for engaging with the regulatory agencies for more detailed regulations, and for awareness campaigns that address the stigma itself.
Settle it in the contract and the handbook
Most of the trouble in this area can be dealt with before anyone comes back from leave. Employers can work through the following:
- Audit existing policies. Review current maternity and breastfeeding accommodations to identify gaps relative to the Labour Law.
- Write the internal policy out. State nursing break entitlements and the procedure for requesting them in the employee handbook.
- Designate the space. Even where it is not legally mandated, a lactation room helps prevent potential conflicts and supports maternal well-being.
- Train management. Educate supervisors and HR teams on breastfeeding rights, to prevent inadvertent violations.
- Document the accommodations. Keep records of nursing break usage and facility access, to demonstrate compliance if a dispute arises.
- Take legal advice. Employment contracts and internal policies should reflect the statutory requirements, and our contract drafting team prepares them.
The contract and the policy should specify the nursing break entitlement, detail the process for requesting accommodations, and establish a grievance mechanism. Employers also benefit from advice on the statutory entitlements, the potential liabilities, and what there is to gain from accommodating nursing breaks beyond the minimum requirement. Knowledge gaps on either side may cause inadvertent violations.
Training programmes for HR personnel and management sit alongside the documents, and build a culture of compliance and respect. Workplace policies then need continuous monitoring and compliance checks.
Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have put the facilities in the statute
Jurisdictions such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have recently augmented their labour laws to explicitly require dedicated lactation spaces and extended nursing breaks. Saudi Arabia’s Labour Law mandates two paid nursing breaks of 30 minutes each during the workday for up to two years after childbirth, alongside a requirement for lactation rooms in workplaces with more than 20 female employees. That sets a precedent UAE policymakers may consider.
The UAE’s commitment to ILO Convention No. 183 on Maternity Protection signals an intention to harmonise labour policies with global standards. The convention recommends at least one paid nursing break per day, or a reduction of working hours for breastfeeding mothers without loss of pay, and the provision of adequate facilities. The UAE’s current nursing break provision aligns with those recommendations, and further enhancements, such as mandating lactation rooms, would strengthen protections and reduce ambiguity.
Legislative focus on maternal workplace rights is expected to increase as the UAE aligns more closely with international labour standards. Potential developments include explicit regulations requiring lactation rooms in specific workplace types, extensions of nursing break durations or age limits, enhanced anti-discrimination enforcement relating to breastfeeding, and integration of maternal rights within corporate social responsibility frameworks. Nour Attorneys advises on such developments through its corporate governance advisory service.
If the break is refused
Start with the paperwork. Submit written requests for nursing breaks and facilities as early as possible. Keep records of communications with HR or supervisors. Document any refusal or discriminatory conduct.
Where there is non-compliance or retaliation, the employee may pursue a complaint before the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), or initiate a labour dispute. That means filing a complaint with MOHRE’s labour dispute resolution centres, seeking mediation or arbitration, or consulting legal counsel about potential litigation. Early intervention through mediation and negotiation can stop a dispute escalating, and our dispute resolution team advises on the negotiation and the advocacy. If it goes further, the case turns on evidence of statutory non-compliance or discriminatory conduct, which is why the workplace documentation matters.
Nour Attorneys advises employers and employees on breastfeeding rights in the UAE workplace, drawing on its personal status law and family law practice, and represents employees through these processes; you can contact the firm to discuss a case.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
