Woman ‘Mooed’ At For Pumping Breast Milk At Work Wins Harassment Suit

A woman who was “mooed” at for pumping breast milk at work recently settled a discrimination and harassment case against co-workers at Velocitel, Inc. in Oregon. People states that Monica Van De Pitte, who no longer works for the company, also found a picture of a cow taped to the door of a supply room that nursing mothers were told to use if they needed to pump.

Van De Pitte worked at the Lake Oswego, Oregon, location of Velocitel, a wireless network services company, when the harassment took place. People reports that when she took a job with the company in 2012, she informed supervisors that she would need a “private space” to pump as she was still nursing her 1-year-old son.

After being “mooed” at by other employees and being forced to pump her breast milk in an office supply room, Monica found that she had a hard time pumping due to the harassment. In addition to the “mooing” and being forced to pump inside a supply room, Van De Pitte and other nursing mothers were demeaned by employees who pretended to “honk” their breasts when they walked by.

“On her first day of work, another nursing mother told her that the “private space” was the company’s supply room. Her co-worker then cautioned her to keep her breast pump hidden because other employees thought it was ‘gross.'”

Legal papers obtained by People magazine stating that she “struggled to compose herself enough to express any milk once inside the room.”

Baby Center states that some women have difficulty pumping breast milk at work and that it’s optimal to relax and find a “comfortable, private space” to express milk. A supply room with a cow taped to the door and co-workers “mooing” nearby certainly does not sound conducive to pumping, but that is what Monica reportedly had to deal with while at work.

Monica complained to supervisors and filed a sexual harassment complaint, but was reportedly told to “privately reflect on why sexual conversations made her uncomfortable.”

Monica Van De Pitte quit her job at Velocitel in 2013 and filed a formal complaint with Oregon’s Bureau of Labor and Industries. A settlement was recently reached, but the amount of compensation was not disclosed.

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