Breastfeeding bureaucrats will be given time off work to feed their babies under new Queensland policy.
Premier Anna Bligh introduced the new breastfeeding and work policy on Thursday to support public servants who wanted to continue breastfeeding on their return to work.
She said women would be given one hour of paid time a day for lactation breaks.
Government offices would also need to provide a clean and private space for mums to feed their babies or express milk and a refrigerator for expressed milk.
She said the hour could be taken in several blocks and mums could use leave entitlements if they required more than the hour.
Ms Bligh, who was given the opportunity to breastfeed her own son at work, said there were a host of health benefits associated with breastfeeding and it was important to support parents who decided to do so.
"If someone had a nanny, a baby might be brought in for half an hour a day to be fed," she said.
"This is an important part of getting work-family life balance."
She said the policy, which was already in place in some public sector workplaces, was about making clear to workers the rights of breastfeeding mums and changing attitudes.
Workplaces would implement the policy according to need.
Some workplaces might have dedicated lactation rooms, while meeting rooms might be used in other cases, she said.
"Increasingly, workplaces and good managers realise that skilled workers are an important part of good workplaces," Ms Bligh said.
"And you don't want to lose some of your best people simply because you haven't been able to make some sensible, practical arrangements that support them as they become parents."
Ms Bligh said private companies should consider similar programs.
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