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A young mother claims her boss is a New York City district Amazon The fulfillment center made expressing milk at work so unpleasant that she felt she had no choice but to stop breast-feeding Her twin babies were born out of fear of losing their jobs, according to a federal civil rights lawsuit. independent.
Among them, Iharae Jackson works the night shift as a picker at an Amazon warehouse. staten islandsaid she would have continued to pump breast milk if it weren’t for the company’s “continued harassment” and “discriminatory practices.”
Among other things, Jackson, 29, accused Amazon managers of real-time monitoring of her approved breastfeeding sessions, deducting her pay for the time she spent walking to and from her mother’s room in a distant place, and peppering her with accusatory questions and comments such as:
- “Why don’t you take some time off for lunch?”
- “Why do you need to pump so often?”
- “Who told you you could pump breasts?”
- “Why [did] it [take] Do you want to pump so much? ”
- “How many times are you going to suck?”
- “Why [can’t] you use [your] Taking a 15 minute break to pump? ”
- “Your computer says you’re not at your station. [while pumping];You will be punished for this! ”
However, Jackson believes HR ignored her concerns and ultimately fired her.
An Amazon spokesman did not respond to a request for comment Friday.
Although pump rights at work is protected by federal lawnursing mothers have filed and won lawsuits in the past against large companies they claimed were obstructing them. In 2019, an Amazon warehouse employee in Riverside County, California, sued the company over similar claims Those in the Jackson lawsuit. The company later settled; the terms of the agreement remain confidential.
That same year, an Arizona jury $3.8 million awarded to caregivers The Tucson Fire Department’s human resources manager reportedly told her “pumping water seemed[ed] Excessive” which made her “unfit for the discharge of her duties”.
Last February, the city settled a lawsuit brought by five NYPD paramedics who claimed their supervisors Refusing to provide a clean space to pumpand then discipline them when they object.
According to Jackson, she started working at Amazon in May 2024 complain The lawsuit against the company was filed Thursday in Brooklyn federal court.
“As a picker, [Jackson] Worked closely with various warehouse staff responsible for picking up orders and sending them to the delivery platform,” the complaint states.
She reportedly worked Thursday through Sunday, 6:15 p.m. to 6:45 a.m., and was paid $21.25 an hour. The complaint continues, and Amazon allowed Jackson and her coworkers a standard 15-minute paid break and a 45-minute unpaid lunch break during each shift.
On September 28, 2024, Jackson took maternity leave to care for her newborn twins and returned to work on December 4. Upon her return, Jackson contacted Amazon’s Disability and Leave Services department to “request a reasonable accommodation for her expressed intent.” breast milk exist [the] Soon after, Jackson was allowed to take 30-minute breastfeeding breaks every two hours, according to the indictment.
Amazon, this is Founded by the third richest man in the worldJackson’s complaint alleges that “there is no firm, meaningful or up-to-date policy in place to accommodate nursing mothers.”
To this end, Jackson argued that the pump room she was provided with was “unreasonably close to her work area and required [her] The complaint said it took “10 to 15 minutes each way” to get there, leaving her unable to express breast milk, clean breast pump supplies and return to her workplace within half an hour. She was also required to clock out before heading to the pumping room, which effectively resulted in her wages being docked.
If she returned late, Jackson would be “reprimanded for being missing for too long,” according to the lawsuit. At the same time, however, Jackson’s supervisors continued to assign her to work farther and farther away from the pump room, the complaint said.
The complaint alleges that in January 2025, Jackson emailed an Amazon field human resources representative telling her that she “felt like she was being targeted for pumping breast milk during her shift and requested that the matter be investigated and resolved.” However, the complaint alleges that Jackson’s concerns were not properly addressed.
The next month, Jackson escalated her concerns to Amazon’s ethics hotline and received a response email from a senior human resources investigator less than a week later, the complaint said. He allegedly told Jackson that he had conducted a “thorough investigation” and “found no violations of Amazon policies.”
just then revenge Jackson claimed, beginning. The complaint states that on April 15, 2025, Jackson was booked for “allegedly counting the wrong items.”
“To eliminate counting errors, employees had to scan 5,000 items,” it continued. “because [Jackson] She was unable to scan the 5,000 items due to a pumping break and was therefore responsible for the error, which other non-nursing/male staff could correct by scanning the number of items required. “
Jackson asked her coworkers if they had ever been booked for similar violations, and they all said they had not, according to the complaint.
“[Jackson] Complaining that the story was vindictive, her complaints fell on deaf ears,” the lawsuit states. “Each time [Jackson] Complaint of discrimination[,] She was written down as revenge. “
By May, the complaint said Jackson “could not tolerate the continued harassment and decided to stop pumping out of fear.” [of losing] her job. if not for [Amazon’s] discriminatory practices, [Jackson] Will continue to nurse her twins. “
Jackson contacted Amazon human resources again to ask her what happened and was called into a meeting two weeks later.
There, she was told “the matter was closed,” and criticized Amazon Because “immediate corrective action” was not taken.
Additionally, Jackson was told that two of her colleagues “encouraged [her] Exercising her rights as a nursing mother” has been “removed from the website.”
“To add insult to injury…hurt, [Jackson] was asked if he planned to continue pumping,” the complaint states.
Jackson was fired in mid-June 2025, the complaint states, adding that she was fired “because she objected [Amazon]discriminatory practices. “
Jackson’s complaint alleges the experience caused her emotional anguish, distress, inconvenience and severe emotional and physical distress.
She is now seeking an injunction prohibiting Amazon from discriminating against nursing mothers of any kind; lost wages and benefits; compensatory damages for mental and emotional harm; and punitive damages in a total amount to be determined by a jury, plus court costs and attorney fees.