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<baltimore-city-law heading="§ 16-20 Employer policy and process.">
  <section prefix="§" num="16-20" heading="Employer policy and process.">
    <para num="(a)" heading="In general.">Each employer subject to this subtitle must develop and implement a written lactation accommodation policy.</para>
    <para num="(b)" heading="Minimum contents.">The written policy must:<para num="(1)">contain a statement that employees have a legal right to request a lactation accommodation;</para>
      <para num="(2)">include the employer’s process for requesting a lactation accommodation, which process must, at a minimum:<para num="(i)">specify the means by which an employee must submit the request to the employer;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">require the employer to respond to the request within 5 business days; and</para>
        <para num="(iii)">require the employer and employee to engage in an interactive process to determine lactation break periods and a lactation location appropriate for the employee;</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(3)">state that, whenever the employer does not provide lactation breaks or a lactation location, or provides a lactation location that does not fully comply with Part 2 of this subtitle, or asserts any waiver or variance granted under &lt;cite data-path="|11|§16-14"&gt;§ 16-14 {“Waiver or variance for undue hardship”} of this subtitle&lt;/cite&gt;, the employer will be required to describe, in a written response to the request, the specific bases on which the employer has done so;</para>
      <para num="(4)">state that any employee aggrieved by an alleged violation of this subtitle may file a complaint with the Baltimore Community Relations Commission; and</para>
      <para num="(5)">state that retaliation against an employee for exercising the rights conferred by this subtitle is prohibited.</para>
    </para>
    <para num="(c)" heading="Employer to keep copies of all responses.">The employer must retain, in accordance with &lt;cite data-path="|11|§16-21"&gt;§ 16-21 {“Employer records”} of this subtitle&lt;/cite&gt;, a copy of all written responses made under the policy required by subsection (b)(3) of this section.</para>
    <para num="(d)" heading="Distribution of policy.">
      <para num="(1)">The employer must distribute a copy of the employer’s lactation accommodation policy to all employees:<para num="(i)">upon their hiring; and</para>
        <para num="(ii)">again, within 10 calendar days of any modification to the policy.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(2)">The employer must also offer a copy of the lactation accommodation policy to any employee who requests or inquires about pregnancy or parental leave.</para>
      <para num="(3)">If the employer has an employee handbook or set of policies that is available to employees, the lactation accommodation policy must be included in that handbook or set of policies.</para>
    </para>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 18-213</annotation>
  </section>
</baltimore-city-law>
